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Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday hit back at critics questioning India's latest GDP data, asserting that the growth figures are compiled through an independent statistical process and are free of any political interference.
Speaking at a National Workshop on Leveraging Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), organised as part of an outreach programme, Goyal described the first-quarter growth numbers as a landmark achievement. "The results of the first-quarter growth are very, very exciting, holding tremendous promise for the future," he said, pointing to a 7.8 per cent GDP growth rate at constant prices. According to the data release by the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation on Monday, India's real GDP grew 7.8 per cent year-on-year in the April-June quarter of FY27, The growth was higher than the 6.9 per cent recorded in the year-ago quarter, but moderated from the 8.6 per cent growth in the January-March quarter, marking a strong start to the new financial year despite the West Asia conflict and global uncertainties. The 7.8 per cent expansion was also above the RBI's 7 per cent projection. The minister urged Industry and stakeholders not to be swayed by narratives questioning the credibility of the data. "I can tell you with full authority, as a person who understands numbers, that these figures are not made by the government, ministers or bureaucrats," Goyal said, adding that they are the outcome of an elaborate and independent mechanism run by the Ministry of Statistics, irrespective of which party is in power. Taking aim at critics of the government's economic record, Goyal referenced a former finance secretary and a former RBI governor, using the Hindi idiom "angoor khatte hain" a reference to the "sour grapes" fable to suggest their criticism stemmed from personal disappointment rather than objective analysis. Earlier this week, Former Finance Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg while speaking to a news channel had questioned the reported 7.8 per cent GDP growth in Q1 FY27, arguing that last year's current GDP had been revised from Rs 86 lakh crore to Rs 80 lakh crore and that, without the revision, growth at current prices would have been around 2.6 per cent. Goyal also targeted the Leader of the Opposition, recalling that the Indian economy had been dismissed as a "dead economy" a few weeks earlier, and had more recently been predicted to be on the verge of collapse. Goyal said such pessimism needed to be countered through collective effort and consistent, outcome-oriented performance that brings the entire country along and encourages new entrepreneurs to explore global markets. Turning to trade policy, the minister said India's ongoing and upcoming Free Trade Agreements spanning economies with a combined GDP of about $60 trillion would give the country preferential access to nearly two-thirds of global trade. He added that further agreements are expected to be concluded in the coming months and years, opening up what he called tremendous opportunities for Indian businesses. (ANI)
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