Economy growing in right direction: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitahraman on Tuesday in the Lok Sabha said the economy is moving in the right direction, and India has become the fastest-growing major economy in the world. For the full 2023-24, the government has budgeted the fiscal deficit to be Rs17.86 lakh crore or 5.9 per cent of the GDP. The April-October fiscal deficit was 45.6 per cent of the full-year Budget Estimate of the last fiscal.

Replying to a debate on Supplementary Demands for Grants, Finance Minister Sitharaman said fiscal prudence is the top priority of the government without compromising on social welfare. The House later approved the Supplementary Demands for Grants, allowing the government to spend an additional over Rs1.29 lakh crore, of which Rs58,378 crore would be the cash outgo in the current fiscal. The remaining Rs70,968 crore will be matched by the savings and receipts. “Our economy is moving in the right direction. Macroeconomic fundamentals are fine. We have become the fastest-growing economy.