Context:
Recently, the Ministry of Finance released a report titled “Indian Economy – A Review” as Economic Survey to show the events that marked the year 2023.
Economic Survey:
- A comprehensive annual report displaying the performance of the Indian economy in the past fiscal year.
- Prepared by – Department of Economic Affairs
- Under Ministry of Finance
- Presented in – Parliament, a day before the presentation of the Budget (normally on 31st January).
- 1st Economic Survey – in 1950-51 as part of Union Budget.
- In 1964 – decoupled from Union Budget.
Economic Survey 2024:
- Since the Lok Sabha elections are due in April, only interim budget will be presented before election.
- After the results are declared, a complete budget and the Economic Survey will be presented in July 2024.
- Presented by – The Chief Economic Advisor (CEA).
- Features – Summarises the performance of government’s initiatives and provides an outlook of the prospects of the Indian economy in the short to medium term.
- Part A – includes all the important developmental programmes of the central government as well as a broad review of the economy.
- Part B – It covers specific topics and highlights the policy initiatives of the Union government such as social security, poverty, education etc.
- Importance – helps the government in analysing the performance of various sectors, giving a highlight on how the previous budget worked and providing insights on formulating economic strategies for the coming year.
Economic Survey vs. Union Budget:
| Economic Survey | Union Budget | |
| Content | Deals with economic policies and measure for the upcoming year | Deals with revenue and expenditure of the year |
| Presented on | Non-election year (31st January) | Non-election year (1st February) |
| Presented by | Chief Economic Advisor | Union Finance Minister |
| Submitted to | Both Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha | Only Lok Sabha |
Source: The Hindu
Previous Year Question
Consider the following statements :
1. Tax revenue as a percent of GDP of India has steadily increased in the last decade.
2. Fiscal deficit as a percent of GDP of India has steadily increased in the last decade.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2017 Prelims]
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (d)
Explanation:
Statement 1 is not correct:
The tax-to-GDP ratio has not been consistently increasing over the last decade due tax authorities and tightened compliance monitoring, which have contributed to robust GST collections.
Statement 2 is not correct:
The fiscal deficit as a percent of GDP has seen significant fluctuations over the last decade due to economic challenges like tightening policies etc.
