India’s Fiscal Deficit Hits Rs 7.10 Lakh Crore in April-August, 41.9% of FY27 Target

India's fiscal deficit stood at Rs 7.10 lakh crore in the first five months of the current fiscal (April-August), accounting for 41.9 per cent of the government's full-year Budget Estimate (BE), according to official data released on Wednesday. The fiscal deficit stood at 38.1 per cent of the annual target. The Centre has budgeted a fiscal deficit of Rs 16.96 lakh crore for FY27. The government said it received Rs 13,67,709 crore up to August 2026, 37.5 per cent of the corresponding BE 2026-27 of Total Receipts.

It comprises Rs 8,37,921 crore of Tax Revenue (Net to Centre), Rs 4,54,549 crore of Non-Tax Revenue, and Rs 75,239 crore of Non-Debt Capital Receipts. Moreover, Rs 5,90,391 crore has been transferred to state governments as Devolution of Share of Taxes during this period, which is Rs 60,243 crore lower than the previous year. Total Expenditure incurred by the Centre is Rs 20,77,958 crore (38.9 per cent of corresponding BE 2026-27), out of which Rs 15,68,009 crore is on Revenue Account and Rs 5,09,949 crore is on Capital Account, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement.

Out of the total revenue expenditure, Rs 5,14,810 crore is on account of Interest Payments, and Rs 1,87,037 crore is on account of Major Subsidies, it added. Net tax revenue reached 29.2 per cent of the full-year estimate, compared with 28.6 per cent during the corresponding period last year. Non-tax revenue stood at 68.2 per cent of the annual target, lower than 75.5 per cent in the year-ago period, the data showed. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had pegged the fiscal deficit target at 4.3 per cent of GDP in the Union Budget for FY27. Meanwhile, the Central government has said it would borrow Rs 7.86 lakh crore in the second half of this fiscal (FY27), including through Sovereign Green Bonds worth Rs 15,000 crore. According to a Finance Ministry statement, the borrowing would be executed through 23 weekly auctions.

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