March 17: The budget deficit of the government has exceeded Rs 138.84 billion in the current fiscal year. As of March 15, the government has spent a total of Rs 806.64 billion and collected Rs 667.80 billion rupees through revenue and grants.

According to the records of the Financial Comptroller General's Office, which keeps the record of government’s income and expenditure, the government's expenditure has exceeded its income during this period of the current year. During the review period, revenue collection has reached 45.2 percent of the annual target and the budget expenditure is 45.35 percent of the target.

In Nepal, it has become a trend of announcing ambitious budget without ensuring resources. Due to this, there is a problem of budget deficit and lack of budget to implement the programmes.

Although the government had announced a budget of Rs 1751.31 billion for the current fiscal year, the government has neither been able to spend the budget according to the target nor collect revenue.

Whenever the government announces a big budget and fails to meet the target, the government reduces the size of the budget through half-yearly review of the budget.

This year, the then Finance Minister Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat reduced the estimate of income and expenditure for this year following the half-yearly review.

Mahat reduced the size of the budget by Rs 200 billion. Following the review, the budget was downsized to Rs 1530.26 billion for the current year.

However, it seems that the government is unlikely to spend even the revised budget.

So far, the government's current expenditure has reached 51.2 percent, capital expenditure 27.36 percent and the expenditure towards the financial management has reached 45.33 percent.

The government has allocated a budget of Rs 1141.78 billion under the heading of current expenditure which covers the government’s expenses on salaries and allowances of employees, administrative expenses and subsidies going to the local level. So far, the government has spent Rs 584.61 billion under this heading.

Similarly, capital expenditure has also been minimal. So far, the government has not been able to spend even Rs 100 billion of the capital budget.

This year, the government has allocated Rs 302.7 billion rupees under the capital heading, but has spent only Rs 82.65 billion. Likewise, Rs 307.45 billion have been allocated for the financial management, under which it has spent Rs 139.37 billion.

According to the data of the Financial Comptroller General Office, the expenditure towards financial management was more than the capital expenditure by Rs 56.71 billion in the past month.

The government’s target has been affected by the recession in the economy. Government officials are saying that the economy has started to improve lately.