New Delhi:
Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India, KV Subramanian on Friday defended the policies of the Centre after the economic growth slipped to 4.5 per cent in July-September quarter, which is the lowest since 2013. Subramanian claimed that the fundamentals of the Indian economy continued to be strong and the Gross Domestic Product or GDP growth will pick up in the next quarter.
"We are saying again that the fundamentals of the Indian economy continue to be strong. GDP is expected to pick in Quarter 3," news agency ANI quoted Subramanian as saying.
According to the official data released on Friday, India's economic growth in the second quarter slipped to the lowest in more than six years. The country's GDP grew at 4.5 per cent in the second quarter of the current financial year as compared to the 5 per cent in the previous quarter.
The previous low was recorded at 4.3 per cent in the January-March period of 2012-13 during the UPA rule. During the six-month period (April-September 2019), the Indian economy grew 4.8 per cent as against 7.5 per cent in the same period a year ago.
Also Read | Growth Down, But There Won't Be Any Recession, Says Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
Output of eight core infrastructure industries also contracted by 5.8 per cent in October, indicating the severity of economic slowdown. As many as six of eight core industries saw a contraction in output in October. Coal production fell steeply by 17.6 per cent, crude oil by 5.1 per cent, and natural gas by 5.7 per cent.
Reacting to the abysmal GDP growth figures, the Opposition Congress accused the Narendra Modi government of pushing the country’s economy into "coma" through its "divisive" policies.
"India's GDP has collapsed to an abysmal 4.5%, and we are in a virtual free-fall. But why is the BJP celebrating when this is the lowest our GDP has sunk in six years? That's because GDP means Godse Divisive Politics to them, and by that measure, India can be seen to have achieved double-digit growth. It's all about perspective," Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.
