India’s food subsidy spending to reach $11.9b

India’s food subsidy spending for the current financial year is expected to reach 2.25 trillion rupees ($11.97 billion), according to four government sources.

This represents an 11 per cent increase from the initial estimate in the February interim budget. The primary driver behind this increase is higher government spending on support prices for crops purchased from farmers.

The combined expenditure for food and fertiliser subsidies is also expected to rise by five per cent, reaching 3.88 trillion rupees.

These revised figures will be incorporated into the new budget scheduled for presentation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government on July 23rd.

In the interim budget, food and fertiliser subsidies accounted for roughly eight per cent of India’s total spending (47.66 trillion rupees) for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2025.

The government intends to maintain its previous estimate of 1.64 trillion rupees for fertiliser subsidies.

Attribution: Reuters