FM: STEPS TO BOOST GROWTH ON ANVIL

Economy has hit a three-year low of 5.7%

Amid growing concern in Central government circles over the stress on the economy, finance minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday said the government had taken note of all the indicators and additional measures would be taken to boost growth after he discusses the matter with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Mr Jaitley’s comments have come against the backdrop of the slackening economic growth in the country, which hit a threeyear low of 5.7 per cent in the first quarter of this financial year.

He was interacting with the media after the meeting of the Union Cabinet on Wednesday.

The gravity of the situation could be gauged from the fact that Mr Modi had planned a meeting of secretaries of all economic ministries to discuss measures to curb negative trends on September 19, but it got postponed at the last moment.

Mr Jaitley had later Tuesday evening held deliberations with the secretaries of revenue, expenditure, economic affairs and financial services departments, where commerce minister Suresh Prabhu and railway minister Piyush Goyal were also present, along with Niti Aayog vice-chairman Rajiv Kumar and senior PMO officials.

Speaking to the media, the Union finance minister said, when asked about Tuesday’s meeting, that the government was considering additional measures to bolster the economy.

Two years ago, India was touted as a rare bright spot in a gloomy global economy. But since early 2016, GDP growth has fallen for six consecutive quarters, slumping to a three-year low in April-June quarter.