Govt achieves 3.9% fiscal deficit target in 2015-16

New Delhi: Government on Tuesday said it has achieved the fiscal deficit target of 3.9 percent of GDP in 2015-16.

"Fiscal deficit is 3.9 percent of GDP or Rs 5.32 lakh crore in 2015-16," the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) said while releasing the provisional accounts for the last financial year.

For 2016-17, the government aims to further bring down the fiscal deficit -- the gap between expenditure and revenue -- to 3.5 percent.

The CGA further said revenue deficit during the last fiscal was 2.5 percent of GDP.

As per the provisional data, the fiscal deficit in April was Rs 1.37 lakh crore, which is 25.7 percent of the Budget estimate as against 23 percent a year ago.

The fiscal deficit for the whole year is estimated at Rs 5.33 lakh crore.

Total expenditure of the government in April was Rs 1.61 lakh crore, or 8.2 percent of the full-year estimate.

Of the total expenditure, Plan spending was Rs 45,543 crore while for non-Plan, it was Rs 1,16,442 crore.

Revenue collection was Rs 22,075 crore, or 1.6 percent, of the estimate.

Total receipts of the government -- from revenue and non-debt capital -- in April stood at Rs 24,659 crore.

The revenue deficit during the month was Rs 1,19,075 crore, or 33.6 percent, it said.

Revenue deficit refers to the shortfall in total government revenue realisation from the targeted figure.