The Central Statistics Office (CSO) will this afternoon release the figure of growth in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) between the first quarter of this financial year i.e. April to June. It is being feared that this quarter may see the lowest growth in five years. The annual report of the Reserve Bank and the Reuters poll give disappointing indications about GDP figures.
The country's economy is already in a state of lethargy, in such a situation, if the figures of low growth in GDP are to come, then the situation will be worse. Experts in a survey by international news agency Reuters believe that the growth rate of the Indian economy may fall to 5.7 percent in the first quarter of FY 2019-20.
40% of economists in the Reuters survey believe that the growth rate in GDP can be only 5.6%. This will be the lowest growth rate in five years. Not only this, it may be the weakest start of any quarter in the last seven years. In its last financial year i.e. January to March quarter, the economy was sluggish and GDP growth was only 5.8 percent.
Due to less than 6 percent growth in the second consecutive quarter, the economy is expected to go slow. According to the Business Standard, an internal assessment report of the Reserve Bank of India says that the growth rate of the Indian economy in the April-June quarter can be just 5.5 percent.
A Bloomberg survey has also released an estimate of GDP growth rate of 5.7 percent in the June quarter. Similarly, India Ratings and Research Pvt Ltd also reported 5.7 percent GDP growth in the first quarter. India Ratings has also reduced India's annual GDP growth estimate from 7.3 percent to 6.7 percent. The agency believes that the economy may remain sluggish for the third year in a row due to reduced consumption, monsoon rains less than expected, reduced manufacturing.
Significantly, the Modi government has set a target of making the country a $ 5 trillion economy in the next five years, but experts say that it should have a growth rate of 9 percent annually for several consecutive years.
