The government's public debt in the January-March 2012 period increased by 5.4 per cent to Rs35,98,791 crore over the previous quarter, the Finance Ministry said on Wednesday.
"The total public debt of the Government increased to Rs35,98,791 crore at end-March 2012 from Rs34,13,683 crore at end-December 2011," the ministry's January-March 2012 quarter report on Public Debt Management revealed.
Internal debt constituted 89.7 per cent of the total at March 2012 end, compared with 89.1 per cent at the end of the December quarter. The report further said that the marketable securities (consisting of Rupee denominated dated securities and treasury bills/cash management bills) accounted for 79.5 per cent of total public debt, compared with 78.4 per cent at end-December 2011 "The outstanding internal debt of the government at Rs32,27,288 crore constituted 36.2 per cent of GDP compared with 34.1 per cent at end-December 2011," the report said.
Liquidity conditions in the economy remained generally tight during the quarter with liquidity deficit remaining above the Reserve Bank's stated comfort zone of about one per cent of Net Demand and Time Liabilities (NDTL) of commercial banks.
The net amount provided under Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF) operations increased substantially towards the end of the quarter due to advance tax payments. The RBI also conducted open market operations to support liquidity and purchased securities worth Rs88,041 crore during the quarter ended March 2012.
As per the report, during April-February of 2011-12, gross tax collections at 78.0 per cent of revised estimate (RE) were lower than 79.8 per cent a year ago. In the direct taxes, corporation tax collections showed a moderate growth of 7.1 per cent while personal income tax collections increased by 17 per cent as against growth rates of 9.7 per cent and 17.3 per cent, respectively, in the RE for the last fiscal.
Among the major indirect taxes, while collections from custom duties and service tax showed healthy growth rates of 13.7 per cent and 36.5 per cent, respectively, during April-February 2011-12, collection from excise duties grew at a lower rate of 5.2 per cent against 9.0 per cent in the RE.