NEW DELHI: In possibly the swiftest start to government spending in nearly two decades, the Narendra Modi administration has deployed nearly 9% of the budget in the first month itself, a chunk of it going to capital spending. Indicating the government’s focus on execution, this early surge should provide momentum to the economy until private demand steps in.Data released Friday showed the government had spent 8.7% of the allocation in April compared with 6.7% in the previous year. “The front loading of government capital spending, albeit boosted by disbursement of loans, is encouraging,” said ICRA economist Aditi Nayar . “Supplementing the same with an early award of fresh projects in various sectors on a plug-and-play basis, with all clearances in place, would help cement an investment recovery.”Total spending in April was Rs 1.55 lakh crore, of which 17% was on the capital account compared with 10.3% of the total last year.Total capex in April was Rs 26,209 crore, of which loans accounted for about Rs 12,000 crore. In April last year, the total capex was Rs 12,443 crore, of which loans were about Rs 2,000 crore. The biggest beneficiary has been the roads sector. The Nitin Gadkari-headed road ministry spent Rs 5,830 crore in April, 14% of the entire fiscal’s planned allocation compared with no spending in the year-earlier period.The early start to government spending should galvanise private investment. The government had been forced to slash public spending in the last quarter of the previous fiscal, dragging down growth. Value addition in public administration, defence and other services— a proxy for government spending— rose just 0.1% in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal.The rural development ministry disbursed Rs 17,503 crore in April, 24% of its total plan allocation for the year, which should help address farm sector stress. The civil aviation ministry and the department of atomic energy have also spent comparatively more. Non-plan spending is 9% of the total budgeted for the year, compared with 8.1% last year.The release of food and fertiliser subsidies may have also lifted spending. The higher spending has been largely funded though borrowings, as revenue growth is usually muted in the initial months of the fiscal.The fiscal deficit in the first month of the current financial year is at 23% of the budget compared with 21.4% last year. “It’s a positive sign but going forward the challenge would be the pace of revenue growth as the government cannot slip on the count of fiscal deficit,” said DK Pant of India Ratings.