Relief for Modi govt as July-Sep GDP growth expands to 6.3% from 5.7% in June quarter

PM Narendra Modi/AP-File

New Delhi:  India's GDP growth rose to 6.3% in the July-September quarter from a three-year low of 5.7% in the previous one. It has reversed the five quarters of slowing GDP growth giving a big relief to the Narendra Modi government. According to data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), the GDP for Q2 stood at Rs 31.66 lakh crore, or a growth of 6.3 per cent. "GDP at constant (2011-12) prices in Q2 of 2017-18 is estimated at `31.66 lakh crore, as against `29.79 lakh crore in Q2 of 2016-17, showing a growth rate of 6.3 percent. Quarterly GVA at Basic Price at constant (2011-12) prices for Q2 of 2017-18 is estimated at `29.18 lakh crore, as against `27.51 lakh crore in Q2 of 2016-17, showing a growth rate of 6.1 percent over the corresponding quarter of previous year." "The economic activities which registered growth of over 6.0 percent in Q2 of 2017-18 over Q2 of 2016-17 are ‘manufacturing’, ‘electricity, gas, water supply & other utility services and ‘trade, hotels, transport & communication and services related to broadcasting’. The growth in the ‘agriculture, forestry and fishing’, ‘mining and quarrying’, ‘construction’ 'financial, insurance, real estate and professional services' and ‘Public administration, defence & other services’ is estimated to be 1.7 percent, 5.5 percent, 2.6 per cent, 5.7 percent and 6.0 percent respectively, during this period." The agriculture, forestry and fishing sector is estimated to have grown by 1.7 per cent. Chief Statistician T C A Anant said the increase in second quarter GDP growth to 6.3 pc showed significant trend reversal in growth rates. Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath congratulated and thanked PM Narendra Modi for the rise in GDP. He tweeted:

पहली तिमाही में 5.7% से बढ़कर दूसरी तिमाही में 6.3% GDP के लिए आदरणीय प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi जी के नेतृत्व वाली केंद्र सरकार को हार्दिक बधाई एवं धन्यवाद। https://t.co/Y8Lit5a4oG

— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) November 30, 2017

BJP veteran Yashwant Sinha, a staunch critic of Modi and his government, took a jibe saying, "All our problems now stand resolved."

India must grow at 8% to 10% to create the jobs we need for our youth. But let us celebrate 6.3% as a great achievement of our government. All our problems now stand resolved.

— Yashwant Sinha (@YashwantSinha) November 30, 2017

Congress leader and former Finance Minister P Chidambaram said "he was happy that the July-Sep quarter has registered a growth rate of 6.3%. This a pause in the declining trend of the last five quarters." "But we cannot say now whether this will mark an upward trend in the growth rate," he tweeted "We should wait for the growth rates over the next 3-4 quarters before we can reach a definite conclusion. 6.3% is far below the PROMISE of the Modi government and far below the POTENTIAL of a well-managed Indian economy," his further tweets read.