Govt working on measures to revive economy: Jaitley

NEWDELHI: Finance minister Arun Jaitley said his ministry would soon announce measures to revive economic growth that has decelerated to the slowest pace in three years.

Jaitley’s comments come against the background of the most serious economic challenge the government has faced since it came to power in 2014.

India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth slowed to 5.7% in the quarter ended June, the slowest in three years, from 6.1% in the preceding three months, sparking concern over the state of the economy. The residual impact of the November invalidation of high-value banknotes and the July 1 implementation of the goods and services tax (GST) were seen as contributing factors. Current account deficit at a four-year high (2.4% of GDP in Q1 FY18) and rising retail inflation have further exacerbated the macroeconomic situation.

On Tuesday, Jaitley chaired a meeting to discuss the situation and find solutions to the problem. The meeting was attended by railway minister Piyush Goyal, commerce and industry minister Suresh Prabhu and the secretaries of the finance and commerce and industry ministries. The railway board chairman and representatives from the Prime Minister’s Office and NITI Aayog, the government’s policy think tank, were also in attendance.

Public investment has become the foundation of growth... Cutting it would mean cutting down allocations for social sector and infrastructure schemes. ARUN JAITLEY, Union finance minister