New Delhi, November 28 – For the period from April to October 2025, the Finance Ministry reported that India’s fiscal deficit reached ₹8.25 lakh crore, which is 52.6 % of the projected annual budget. During the same stretch, total receipts slid to 51.5 % of the 2025‑26 budget estimate, amounting to more than ₹18 lakh crore, while spending hit ₹26.25 lakh crore, or 51.8 % of the planned envelope.
Revenue receipts counted ₹17.63 lakh crore, with tax income at ₹12.74 lakh crore and non‑tax gains at ₹4.89 lakh crore. Tax takings actually fell from the previous year’s ₹13.04 lakh crore for the same window, reflecting the budget’s move to lower the income‑tax burden on middle‑class households. This policy shift has boosted disposable income, which analysts say should lift overall demand and encourage growth.
The downturn in the revenue deficit—now ₹2.44 lakh crore, or 46.7 % of the fiscal year’s target—comes partly from the increased dividend the Reserve Bank of India authorised for the central government. The dividend rose to ₹2.69 lakh crore this year from ₹2.11 lakh crore last year, a lift that will help trim the deficit.
On the spending side, subsidies for food, fertilisers and petroleum topped ₹2.46 lakh crore, or about two‑thirds of the revised annual target. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman set a deficit goal of 4.4 % of GDP for 2025‑26, following a policy of progressively lowering the deficit to reinforce the country’s fiscal health. For 2024‑25, the deficit was estimated at 4.8 % of GDP.
Tighter fiscal positions, according to experts, shore up the economy’s fundamentals and pave the way for growth that keeps inflation in check. Lower borrowing needs mean more capital remains available in the banking sector, which can then be lent to businesses and households, amplifying economic momentum.
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