000			01894pab a2200181 454500
008			180718b2017 xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
100			_aKaur, Karamjeet
245			_aMeasuring the quality of union budgets: need to go beyond the deficit measures
260			_c2017
300			_ap.187-195.
362			_aApr-Jun
520			_aIn the run-up to Union Budget 2016ﾖ2017, a major difference of opinion emerged within the Union Government over adherence to fiscal consolidation vis-a-vis maintaining adequate expenditure allocation for essential services, such as health, education and infrastructure development (Business Standard, 2016). As the budget document was unveiled, it was clear from the deficit targets met (and sought to be met in the future) that the government did not deviate from its commitments towards fiscal consolidation. These deficit targets, however, provide limited understanding of the overall 'quality' of expenditure and receipts of the government. In order to comprehend the overall picture and quantify this qualitative aspect, there is a need to go beyond the conventional measures of deficit. This article discusses the concept, meaning and usage of the various measures of deficits in order to, first, highlight their limitations in understanding the overall quality of budgets and, second, make a case for creation of a 'composite index' to reflect the broad quality and composition of budgets. A modest attempt has also been made in this article to evaluate the Union Budgets of the recent years on the basis of one such index developed by Bhide and Panda (2002). Results provide concrete evidence of a discernible improvement in the quality of budgets in the past few years. - Reproduce
650			_aDeficit financing - India
650			_aBudgets - India
650			_aBudgets
773			_aIndian Journal of Public Administration
909			_a115640
999			_c115634 _d115634