The Centre's fiscal deficit touched 74.5 per cent of the annual target at the end of January 2025, according to the data released by Controller General of Accounts (CGA).

       In actual terms, the fiscal deficit -- the gap between expenditure and revenue -- was Rs 11,69,542 crore during the April-January 2024-25 period.

       The deficit was 63.6 per cent of Revised Estimates (RE) of 2023-24 in the year-ago period.

       The CGA data showed that the central government's tax revenue (net) was Rs 19.03 lakh crore, or 74.4 per cent of the RE of 2024-25. It was at 80.9 per cent during the corresponding year of the last financial year.

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       The total expenditure was at Rs 35.7 lakh crore, or 75.7 per cent of the RE, according to the revenue-expenditure data of the Union government. In the year-ago period it was at 74.7 per cent of that year's RE.

       In the Union Budget presented in Parliament, the fiscal deficit for 2024-25 has been pegged at 4.8 per cent of GDP (lower than earlier estimate of 4.9 per cent) and at 4.4 per cent for 2025-26.

       In absolute terms, the fiscal deficit for the financial year ending March 2025 is estimated at Rs 15.69 lakh crore.

       A fiscal deficit is the difference between the total expenditure and revenue of the government. It is an indication of the total borrowing needed by the government.

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