Economic Survey a morale-booster for India's growth story: industry body ASSOCHAM

The industry body said, "The Economic Survey tabled in Parliament today is a morale-booster for India's growth story, projecting 6.5-7 per cent economic expansion for fiscal 2024-25 supported by the robust services sector, promising manufacturing and investor enthusiasm as reflected in encouraging rise in gross fixed capital formation."

As per the Economic Survey 2023-24 tabled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the Indian economy is on a strong wicket and stable footing, demonstrating resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges.

The Indian economy has consolidated its post-Covid recovery with policymakers - fiscal and monetary - ensuring economic and financial stability, the 476-page Economic Survey document said in its initial remarks. It asserted that the economy continues to expand.

India's service sector continues to significantly contribute to India's growth, accounting for about 55 per cent of the total size of the economy in financial year (FY) 24, the Economic survey revealed. As per the Provisional Estimates, the services sector is estimated to have grown by 7.6 per cent in FY24.

''Noteworthy is the fact that Survey's promising GDP projections for the current financial year come in the backdrop of 8.2 per cent economic growth in 2023-24. Growth is well spread across different sectors like manufacturing, real estate, and construction, as pointed out by the important document presented in Parliament, '' ASSOCHAM's Secretary-General Deepak Sood said.

According to official data of the Indian government, the country's GDP grew at an impressive 8.2 per cent during the financial year 2023-24. India's economy grew 7.2 per cent in 2022-23 and 8.7 per cent in 2021-22 respectively."When I look at the Economic Survey, it is clearly a testament to the adaptability and forward-thinking approach that the Government is now looking at... They are highly consolidated numbers," Sood told ANI.

The ASSOCHAM noted that while a robust industrial growth of 9.5 per cent is to be applauded, manufacturing is supported by both domestic and global investors and demand can lead to a consistent increase of its share in the country's GDP. The chamber agreed with the assessment that physical infrastructure, logistics, and compliance bottlenecks have significantly improved over the last few years, thus creating the right environment for increased industrial activities.

The Indian economy has recovered and expanded in an orderly fashion post-pandemic and the real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2023-24 was 20 per cent higher than its level in pre-pandemic 2019-20.Sood shared optimism about the Indian economy, as affirmed by the Economic Survey. Describing it as a bold document, he said, "The way Survey has emphasised the need for creating 78.5 lakh jobs annually till 2030, signals the government's resolve to leverage the fourth global industrial revolution, taking advantage of new age technologies like AI. The industry would join these efforts to steer different technological choices with eyes on creating quality jobs, as pressed upon by the Survey'', the ASSOCHAM Secretary General said. The industry body also noted that the Survey has aptly emphasised the importance of deregulation and the catalyst role of the private sector in boosting investment. Specific stress on expanding the Indian manufacturing sector for generation of employment for ''semi -skilled'' workforce needs to be complimented. (ANI)