The Finance Ministry announced on Wednesday that the Centre intends to raise Rs 7.5 lakh crore through market borrowing in the April-September period of 2024-25 to address the revenue gap and bolster economic growth.
According to an official statement, out of the projected gross market borrowing of Rs 14.13 lakh crore for the fiscal year 2024-25, approximately 53 percent, or Rs 7.5 lakh crore, is slated to be borrowed in the first half (H1).
In the interim Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed borrowing Rs 14.13 lakh crore by issuing dated securities to cover the revenue shortfall in the upcoming financial year. This figure represents a decrease from the previous year's gross borrowing estimate of Rs 15.43 lakh crore, which stood as the highest ever recorded.
\"The gross and net market borrowings through dated securities during 2024-25 are estimated at Rs 14.13 lakh crore and Rs 11.75 lakh crore, respectively. Both will be less than that in 2023-24. Now that private investments are happening at scale, the lower borrowings by the central government will facilitate larger availability of credit for the private sector,\" Sitharaman stated.
There are noticeable indications of private investment resurgence in sectors like steel and cement, attributed to significant capital expenditure by the government.
Contrary to the Rs 10 lakh crore estimate for 2023-24, the government has earmarked Rs 11.11 lakh crore for the following year.
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