NEW ECONOMIC COUNCIL SAYS NOT IN FAVOUR OF STIMULUS

NEW DELHI: An advisory group of economic experts constituted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday warned against breaching the fiscal deficit, potentially ruling out the possibility of a stimulus package to revive the sputtering economy.

The comments by the Economic Advisory Council, led by Bibek Debroy, come amid India’s growth slumping to a three-year low of 5.7% in the April-june quarter, which many experts attribute to demonetisation.

With growth slipping, doubts are being raised over revenue as the Goods and Services Tax is expected to impact collections, leaving little elbow-room for the government to dole out sectorspecific stimulus packages or push up growth with higher capital expenditure.