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India is expected to regain the world’s fastest-growing major economy tag as it is likely to clock 7-7.5 percent growth rate in 2018-19, up from 6.75 percent in the current fiscal, the Economic Survey said on Monday. The economy, said the survey for 2017-18, will grow on the back of major reforms which would be strengthened further in the next financial year. The survey was tabled in Parliament by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. [caption id=“attachment_4324509” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File photo of Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.[/caption] “A series of major reforms undertaken over the past year will allow real GDP growth to reach 6.75 percent this fiscal and will rise to 7 to 7.5 percent in 2018-19, thereby re-instating India as the world’s fastest-growing major economy,” it said.
The reform measures undertaken in 2017-18 can be strengthened further in 2018-19, it said. The survey points out that India can be rated as among the best performing economies in the world as the average growth during last three years is around 4 percentage points higher than global growth and nearly 3 percentage points higher than that of emerging market and developing economies.
It said that the GDP growth has averaged 7.3 per cent from 2014-15 to 2017-18, which is the highest among the major economies of the world. “That this growth has been achieved in a milieu of lower inflation, improved current account balance and notable reduction in the fiscal deficit to GDP ratio makes it all the more creditable,” it said. The Economic Survey is an annual publication of the Finance Ministry which reviews the nation’s growth over the last 12 months. It is presented to both houses of the Parliament during the Budget Session and serves as a preview of the policy recommendations that could find a place in the Union Budget that follows it. The survey reviews all the government schemes, plans, and measures undertaken during the financial year (which is about to end) by various departments of the government, goals achieved, not achieved, as well what should be expected and focussed at in the next financial year. Kovind highlights achievements of govt in joint address to both Houses of Parliament President Ram Nath Kovind kicked off the Budget Session of the Parliament on Monday, while addressing both Houses of the Parliament in a joint sitting, highlighted several accomplishments of the government while also championing its welfare schemes and fight against corruption. Kovind also said that he was hopeful that the Triple Talaq Bill would be passed in the Budget Session of Parliament. “My government has brought the Triple Talaq Bill to safeguard the rights of the Muslim women. And I am hopeful that Parliament will pass the Bill,” Kovind said in his address to the joint sitting of the both Houses. He also said that the government has extended its ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ scheme from 161 districts to 640 districts in the country. “The government has now amended the Maternity Bill by which the women can get ‘paid leave’ of up to 26 weeks instead of 12 weeks. Now the women can spend more time with their newborn babies,” he added. Kovind also referred to contributions of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar and said: “Babasaheb Ambedkar used to say that without economic and social democracy, political democracy is unstable.” Click here for full coverage of Union Budget 2018
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