Lok Sabha Question No. 4036 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-01-04
Subject: Fiscal Deficit due to GST Shortfall
Ministry: FINANCE
Asked by: KALIKESH NARAYAN SINGH DEO

## Government of India Ministry of Finance

## Department of Economic Affairs

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4036

To be answered on Friday, January 4, 2019/Pausha 14, 1940 (Saka)

## FISCAL DEFICIT DUE TO GST SHORTFALL

## 4036. SHRI KALIKESH N. SINGH DEO:

Will the Minister of FINANCE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the fiscal deficit target stood at 103.9 percent of the full year target for April-Oct. 2018 compared to 96.1 percent for the same last year, if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor;
- (b) whether shortfall in the collection of GST for the year 2018-19 poses a risk of meeting the budgeted fiscal deficit target for 2018-19;
- (c) if  so,  the  details  of  the  shortfall  in  GST  collection  in  relation  to  Government decision for fiscal deficit target for the year 2018-19;
- (d) whether the Government has any intended plan to make up for the shortfall in GST collection, if so, the details thereof, if not, the reasons therefor; and
- (e) the other measures taken by the Government to ensure that fiscal deficit target is met?

## A N S W E R

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR FINANCE (SHRI PON. RADHAKRISHNAN)

(a) As  per  the  provisional  unaudited  Statement  of  Monthly  Accounts  for  the Month  of  October,  2018,  the  fiscal  deficit  as  on  31th  October,  2018  was ₹ 6,48,583 crore, which is 103.9 per cent of Budget Estimates ( ₹ 6,24,276 crore) for 2018-19. Fiscal Deficit  at  the  end  of  October,  2017  was ₹ 5,25,321  crore  which  is  96.1  per  cent  of Budget Estimates for 2017-18.

Gross Tax Revenue (GTR) was ₹ 10,39,089 crore at the end of Oct, 2018 which is 45.7 per cent of BE 2018-19 ( ₹ 22,71,242 crore).  GTR as a percentage of BE during the Corresponding  Period  of  Previous  Year  (COPPY)  was  50.9  per  cent.  Non  Tax Revenue Receipts stood at ₹ 1,27,716 crore at the end of Oct, 2018 which is 52.1 per cent  of  BE  2018-19  (COPPY  -  33  per  cent  of  BE).  Non-Debt  Capital  Receipts  were ₹ 19,181  crore  which  is  20.8  per  cent  of  BE  2018-19  (COPPY  -  45.7  per  cent).  Total Expenditure at the end of Oct, 2018 was ₹ 14,56,593 crore which is 59.6 per cent of BE (COPPY - 60.2 per cent).

Fiscal deficit figure shown in monthly accounts during a financial year is not necessarily an indicator of fiscal deficit for the year as it gets impacted by temporal mismatch between flow of not-debt receipts and expenditure up to that month on account of various transitional factors both on receipt and expenditure side, which may get substantially offset by the end of the financial year.

- (b) & (c) The month-wise gross collection of Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST), State Goods and Services Tax (SGST), Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) and Cess for FY 2018-19 are as under:
- (d) & (e) Fiscal deficit targets cannot be linked to shortfall in single revenue item. The Government undertakes many measures including the following to ensure that the fiscal targets as per the Act are met:
- (i) Close monitoring of the expenditure of all Ministries/ Departments to ensure that there is no parking of funds.
- (ii) Encouraging Ministries/Departments to meet their additional requirements for funds from Savings identified within their demands.
- (iii) Efforts  to  ensure  that  targets  for  non-debt  receipts  including  tax  receipts  are achieved.

| Month     | GST collection (in ₹ crore)   |
|-----------|-------------------------------|
| April     | 1,03,459                      |
| May       | 94,016                        |
| June      | 95,610                        |
| July      | 96,483                        |
| August    | 93,960                        |
| September | 94,442                        |
| October   | 100,710                       |
| November  | 97,637                        |
| December  | 94,726                        |

*****