(a) the total amount of foreign debt of the country at the end of March, 2010;
(b) whether the amount of such debt is rising;
(c) if so, the details thereof;
(d) the reasons for rise in the volume of foreign debts; and
(e) the corrective measures taken or proposed by the Government in this regard?
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MLNISTRY OF FINANCE (SHW NAMO NARAIN MEENA)
(a) India`s external debt stood at US$ 262.3 billion at end-March 2010.
(b) & (c) India`s external debt was US$ 224.4 billion at end-March 2008. It increased
marginally to US$ 224.5 billion at end-March 2009 and to US$ 262.3 billion at end-March 2010.
(d) & (e) The increase in India`s external debt in 2009-10 is largely attributed to rise in
External Commercial Borrowings (ECB), NRI deposits, Special Drawing Rights (SDR) allocated by
the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and valuation effect arising from depreciation of the
US dollar against major international currencies.
The prudent external debt management policy of the Government of India which, inter alia,
focuses on monitoring long and short-term debt, raising sovereign loans on concessional
terms with longer maturities, regulating external commercial borrowings through end-use
and all-in-cost restrictions and rationalizing interest rates on Non-Resident Indian (NRI)
deposits, is responsible for maintaining India`s external debt within manageable limits as
indicated by the external debt to GDP ratio of 18.9 per cent and debt service ratio of 5.5
percent during 2009-10.