Centre cuts FY27 borrowing plan, to raise Rs 7.86 lakh cr
New Delhi, Sep 25 (UNI) The central government will borrow Rs 7.86 lakh crore through dated securities in the second half of the financial year 2026-27, including Rs 15,000 crore through Sovereign Green Bonds (SGrBs), according to the borrowing calendar released by the Ministry of Finance on September 25.
The planned borrowing for the October-March period will take the Centre's total market borrowing for FY27 to nearly Rs 16 lakh crore, around Rs 1.20 lakh crore lower than the Rs 17.20 lakh crore estimated in the Budget. The lower borrowing programme is in line with the government's fiscal consolidation strategy, with the fiscal deficit target for FY27 set at 4.3pc of GDP. The Budget has also outlined a debt consolidation roadmap aimed at putting the Centre's debt on a declining trajectory.
The Rs 7.86 lakh crore H2 borrowing programme will be conducted through 23 weekly auctions and will cover government securities with maturities ranging from three years to 50 years. Ten-year securities will account for the largest share at 26.3pc of the planned borrowing, followed by 15-year securities at 17.6pc. Three-year securities will account for 6.9pc, five-year securities 12.1pc, seven-year securities 9.1pc, 30-year securities 9.2pc, 40-year securities 8.9pc and 50-year securities 9.9pc.
The government will continue to undertake switching and buyback operations to manage the redemption profile of its outstanding securities. It has also retained the option to use a greenshoe provision, allowing it to accept additional subscriptions of up to Rs 2,000 crore against each of the securities specified in auction notifications. Separately, the Centre plans to raise Rs 23,000 crore per week through Treasury Bills during the third quarter of FY27, spread across 13 auction weeks.
The programme will comprise Rs 8,000 crore each through 91-day and 182-day T-Bills and Rs 7,000 crore through 364-day T-Bills. To meet temporary mismatches between government receipts and expenditure, the Reserve Bank of India has fixed the Ways and Means Advances (WMA) limit for the second half of FY27 at Rs 50,000 crore. The overall government borrowing programme has been finalised in consultation with the RBI.
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