Govt to cut most non-plan expenditure by 5-10%

By Abhijit Neogy, CNBC-TV18

The Ministry of Finance has issued austerity measures for all departments and ministries. The Expenditure Secretary said there will be a cut in most non-plan expenditure by 5-10%. The Cabinet Secretary will conduct a quarterly review of the austerity drive. The austerity measures are aimed at fiscal and discipline. He also said that there will be a 10 % cut on foreign travel, office and hospitality expenditure. He aims to save upto Rs 6,000 crore via austerity measures.

According to the the Expenditure Secretary, there will be no cut in some non-plan spends like wages and interest payout. He feels that there is a tremendous pressure on this fiscal due to high oil prices.

The government may overshoot fertiliser subsidy bill of Rs 30,000 crore this financial year. He also sai that the government will stick to the FY09 Budget fiscal defecit target of 2.5%. He does not expect extra market borrowing in FY09. The Expenditure Secretary added that there is a freeze on planned schemes at the moment.