Will work for achieving Budget targets: FM

New Delhi, Aug 1: Reacting to a sharp spurt in primary and fiscal deficit during the first quarter of the current fiscal, Finance Minister P Chidambaram today said the government will make efforts to meet the targets set in the Budget, including that of fiscal defcit.

"I am working to meet the targets set in the Budget, including fiscal deficit and market borrowings", Mr Chidambaram told newspersons here. The Minister was responding to queries on whether the government will overshoot the Budget target of 3.8 per cent for fiscal deficit.

Figures released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) yesterday for April- June, 2006, showed that sharp increase in spending by the Central government has pushed up its plan expenditure by more than 58 per cent year-on-year in Q1 of 2006-07.

The massive jump from Rs 24,254 crore to Rs Rs 38,524 crore has, therefore, expanded the primary deficit of the government to over 71.33 per cent over that of last year.

Primary deficit measures the net addition to government's borrowing, excluding the cost of interest payments on its loans.

The fiscal deficit of the Union government has risen in this period by 42.10 per cent.

Mr Chidambaram said the higher expenditure was on account of front loading and added that increased spending on the plan account was healthy, leading to creation of assets.

UNI