Only 73 per cent of Rs 3,15,884 crore (total capital expenditure) earmarked for the whole year was transferred to various government departments until the end of January 2019, according to the Controller General of Accounts data. In the last fiscal, the government had transferred 97 per cent of its capital expenditure budget by the end of January 2018.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways received 69 per cent (so far) of its budgeted Rs 68,564 crore capital expenditure (whereas it had received 95 per cent the previous year). Against 90 per cent the previous year, Railways has got 68 per cent (Rs 53,060 crore), and the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas got only 52 per cent instead of last year's 99 per cent.
It would be premature to conclude that ministries will end up not spending the entire amount, however the numbers are indicative of the accounting jugglery that the finance ministry's is doing to meet fiscal deficit targets.