Govt attains fiscal deficit at the cost of investment -- Ficci

Govt attains fiscal deficit at the cost of investment -- Ficci
ENS ECONOMIC BUREAU

New Delhi, March 2: Government has managed to attain the targeted fiscal deficit of 5.1 per cent of the GDP at the cost of undercutting the planned budgeted investment, Isher Ahluwalia, director and chief executive of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (Icrier), said today.

‘‘Though Finance Minister has presented a bold reform-oriented budget, we must remember it is a long haul and we should keep after the government to stay on course,’’ she said at a post-budget discussion organised by the Ficci. ‘‘Sinha has succeeded in delivering fiscal deficit on target, but it has come at the cost of under-spending on investment and overspending on subsidies,’’ Ahluwalia said.