Interest and debt service
Interest payments and the servicing of public debt from previous borrowing. It is usually the second largest thing the union spends on, and it is a legally committed charge rather than a discretionary programme.
₹12,74,338 crore
spent in 2025–26, 25.7% of all union government spending that year. Revised estimate, not yet final.
Every year on record
| Year | Amount | Share of union spending | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025–26 | ₹12,74,338 crore | 25.67% | Revised estimate |
| 2024–25 | ₹11,15,575 crore | 23.98% | Actuals |
| 2023–24 | ₹10,63,872 crore | 23.94% | Actuals |
| 2022–23 | ₹9,28,517 crore | 22.14% | Actuals |
| 2021–22 | ₹8,05,499 crore | 21.23% | Actuals |
| 2020–21 | ₹6,79,869 crore | 19.37% | Actuals |
What is inside it
2 budget lines make up this category. A group carries no figure of its own anywhere in this dataset: the total above is the sum of these, and each of them cites the document it was read from.
- Interest Payments Interest on money the government has already borrowed, including ₹34,162 crore owed to foreign lenders. ₹12.7 lakh cr
- Repayment of Debt Repaying the principal on money previously borrowed — distinct from Interest Payments, which is the cost of carrying it. ₹0 cr
Who spends it
The same money, grouped by the ministry that spent it rather than by what it paid for. Both views cover exactly the same rupees, that they agree is checked at build time, not assumed.
- Ministry of Finance ₹19.4 lakh cr in total
Your share of it
These are national totals. Put in what you paid in income tax and the same proportions are applied to your own figure.
Work out your own share