New Delhi [India], July 21 (ANI): The central government paid more than Rs. 81 lakh crore toward interest and loan repayments over the last six financial years, from 2020-21 to 2025-26, Parliament was told on Tuesday.
A written reply by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary in the Rajya Sabha showed that the Centre paid a total of Rs. 58.37 lakh crore in interest and Rs. 22.80 lakh crore toward repayment of principal on dated government securities and external loans during the six-year period.
Together, total debt servicing amounted to Rs. 81.17 lakh crore.
The data showed that interest payments increased steadily over the period. The government paid Rs. 6.80 lakh crore in interest in 2020-21, rising to Rs. 8.05 lakh crore in 2021-22, Rs. 9.29 lakh crore in 2022-23, Rs. 10.64 lakh crore in 2023-24, Rs. 11.16 lakh crore in 2024-25 and Rs. 12.43 lakh crore in 2025-26 on a provisional basis.
Repayment of principal also increased during the period. The government repaid Rs. 2.62 lakh crore in 2020-21, followed by Rs. 3.00 lakh crore in 2021-22, Rs. 3.53 lakh crore in 2022-23, Rs. 4.88 lakh crore in 2023-24, Rs. 4.16 lakh crore in 2024-25 and Rs. 4.61 lakh crore in 2025-26 on a provisional basis.
The government has budgeted Rs. 14.04 lakh crore for interest payments and Rs. 6.22 lakh crore for principal repayments during 2026-27, indicating that total debt servicing is expected to exceed Rs. 20 lakh crore in the current financial year.
The reply also showed that the Union government’s total liabilities, as defined under the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act, stood at Rs. 201.17 lakh crore as of March 31, 2026, on a provisional basis. The government has projected the debt to rise to Rs. 218.63 lakh crore by the end of 2026-27, according to the Budget Estimate.
The government’s external debt stood at Rs. 9.89 lakh crore as of March 31, 2026, and is projected to decline to Rs. 9.64 lakh crore by the end of the current financial year. (ANI)
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