Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on July 31 said that the Government is well on track to achieve the target of 4.5 per cent fiscal deficit by 2025-26. In her reply to the debate on the Union Budget in the Rajya Sabha, FM Sitharaman said that from 2026-27 onwards, “We will adhere to a path to ensure that the central government debt as a percentage of GDP is at a declining trend.”
“The Government has always maintained fiscal prudence as one of the important governance principles. From the low levels of GDP during the Covid-19 pandemic, India has become the fastest-growing economy,” Sitharman said. She told the Rajya Sabha that the total expenditure in the Budget is at Rs 48.21 lakh crore — Rs 54,744 crore more than the interim Budget.
“Capex allocation during the 10 years of UPA government was Rs 13.19 lakh crore, while in the 10 years of BJP-led NDA till 2024, it was Rs 43.82 lakh crore,” Sitharaman informed. Agriculture and allied sectors in the Budget 2024-2025 received Rs 1.52 lakh crore, which is Rs 8,000 crore more than the last year.
