Forget GDP growth, talk about price rise, inequality: Congress to Centre

Year's Q1 GDP growth rate is lowest in past three years and claimed that declining GDP growth trend is clearly visible no matter which quarter one looks at, said Jairam Ramesh

Mumbai: The Congress on Thursday took a swipe at the government over the GDP numbers for the first quarter of this fiscal, saying the only growth that the people of India are worried about is rising prices, increasing unemployment, and the growing income inequalities.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the year’s Q1 GDP growth rate is the lowest in the past three years and claimed that the declining GDP growth trend is clearly visible no matter which quarter one looks at.

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India recorded an economic growth rate of 7.8 per cent in the April-June quarter of 2023-24 and remained the fastest growing large economy propelled mainly by its agriculture and financial sectors, government data showed on Thursday.

“But here’s the main issue, the only growth that the people of India are worried about is the rising prices of essential commodities, increasing youth unemployment, and the growing inequality as their incomes fall.

“The PM has no answers to these hard challenges. He has squandered his mandate and wasted away the demographic dividend. Headline and image management will no longer work. India is ready to move on,” he said on X.

Ramesh said this is QSQT (Quarter se Quarter Tak) time and gave out some plain facts in his post.

“Since Covid-19 recovery, starting 2021-22, the Q1 GDP growth rate has always been high because of the low base effect. This year’s Q1 GDP growth rate is the lowest in the past three years.

“Declining GDP growth trend is clearly visible no matter which quarter you look at. And this was the trend before the pandemic as well,” the former Union minister said.

India remains the fastest-growing major economy as China posted a 6.3 per cent growth in April-June 2023.

According to the National Statistical Office (NSO) data, the agriculture sector gross value added (GVA) recorded growth of 3.5 per cent, up from 2.4 per cent in the April-June quarter of 2022-23.

The expansion in ‘financial, real estate and professional services’ GVA was 12.2 per cent, up from 8.5 per cent in the year-ago quarter.