The Union Government spent ₹54,067.45 crore more than approved by Parliament in 2022-23, mainly due to higher debt repayments.
Of this amount, approx ₹53,871 crore or more than 99% came from excess debt servicing expenditure while railways accounted for the remaining ₹196.45 crore under capital expenditure, according to a report tabled by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.
The overspend has been reported under the Ministry of Economy to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Railways and will now require the approval of Parliament to regularize the expenditure.
The government presents revised estimates for the year when presenting the budget on 1 February for the next financial year starting in April. However, expenditure and income in March are reflected in the actual figures presented in the next budget.
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The overspending occurred despite the government receiving additional grants during the financial year, raising concerns about the accuracy of budget estimates and expenditure control, the PAC report chaired by Congress MP KC Venugopal said.
In the case of the Ministry of Finance, additional provisions above ₹70,762 crore was sanctioned but the actual expenditure was still well in excess of the total allocation. Similarly, the railways secured an allowance ₹882 crore through additional grants, but ended up overshooting its allocation ₹196.45 crore, he said.
Spending trends across departments
The PAC is a parliamentary panel that scrutinizes government spending and ensures that public funds are used in accordance with parliamentary approval.
The PAC report said the Defense Department had no overspends for the third year in a row from 2020-21, reflecting continued fiscal discipline. He also noted that the Department of Posts has maintained its expenditure within the approved limits for six consecutive years since 2017-18.
The finance ministry explained that the overpayment of debt was influenced by multiple factors, including exchange rate fluctuations, investor demands to repay maturing bonds, fluctuations in state government cash withdrawals and payment schedules linked to international financial institutions, the report said. These factors have made it difficult to accurately estimate repayment requirements, particularly for instruments such as treasury bills and foreign debt obligations.
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In the case of railways, expenditure overruns were attributed to payments resulting from court decisions, which had not been taken into account at the time of budgeting. According to the PAC report, the ministry said that while provisions were made at the budget stage and through additional allocations, the actual liabilities turned out to be higher, leading to overruns.
PAC calls for stricter fiscal discipline
The PAC said overspending was a recurring problem across ministries, although rules require spending to remain within the limits approved by parliament unless additional funding is formally approved. She noted that such cases persist despite the availability of digital tools and systems that enable real-time tracking of expenses.
The committee also said overspending continued even after large additional grants were approved. She said that budget estimates and revised estimates need to be prepared with more realism to avoid repeated expenditure overruns.
The PAC called for improved fiscal discipline and recommended closer and continuous monitoring of expenditure patterns along with strengthening of internal control mechanisms. She also highlighted the need for better forecasting of obligations such as debt repayments and court-ordered payments, and called on ministries to adopt data-driven systems to track spending and predict variances.
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The committee stressed that compliance with the General Financial Rules for 2017 is essential to ensure that government spending remains within the permitted limits and to maintain parliamentary control over public finances.
According to the budget documents, FY23 facts show that effective capital expenditure has remained flat ₹10,46,289 crore while the revenue deficit was ₹10,69,926 crore and the fiscal deficit remained flat ₹17,37,755 million crowns.
