Government’s outstanding debt increased 5.6 percent in second quarter, total debt stood at Rs 107.04 lakh crore

According to data released on public debt on Wednesday, the government’s total liabilities increased by 5.6 percent to Rs 107.04 lakh crore for the quarter ended September 2020. At the end of the first quarter of the current financial year, the government’s total debt outstanding was Rs 101.3 lakh crore. The 5.6 percent increase in total liabilities on a quarterly basis reflects pressure on revenue collection and rising spending due to the Covid-19 crisis.

Public debt accounted for 91.1 percent of total outstanding liabilities at the end of September 2020, according to the latest quarterly report on public debt management. It stated that the weighted average return of the primary issue of dated securities declined slightly to 5.80 percent in the second quarter of FY 2020-21 from 5.85 percent in the first quarter.

4,20,000 crores dated securities were issued in 13 installments in the second quarter of the current financial year. The government issued securities worth Rs 3,46,000 crores in the first quarter. At the same time, dated securities worth Rs 2,21,000 crores were issued in the same period last year.