India's public debt witnessed a marginal fall of 0.4 percent in the March 2016 quarter over the previous quarter. The debt stood at Rs. 55.73 lakh crore as on March 31, 2016.
Public debt refers to the sum of money owed by a central government. It may also refer to debt owed by provincial, municipal or local governments.
For the March quarter internal debt constituted 92 percent to the total public debt as compared to 92.3 percent in the December 2015-16 quarter, reports Press Trust of India citing the finance ministry's quarterly report on debt management.
Government borrowings for the financial year 2015-16 have reportedly reduced.
The government's outstanding internal debt at Rs. 5.13 lakh crore formed 37.8 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as on March 31, 2016.
"The cash position of the government during Q4 of FY16 was comfortable and remained in surplus mode during the quarter. The issuance amount under treasury bill was also broadly as per calendar," Indo-Asian News Service reports.
Foreign Direct Investments or FDIs during the March quarter were strong and more than sufficient, which could be used to fund external funding requirements, the report by the finance ministry said.
[1 lakh = 100,000 | 1 crore = 10 million | 100 crore = 1 billion]
