INDIA TO GROW @ 7.1%
The
Government today pegged GDP growth at a higher-than-expected 7.1 per
cent for the current fiscal despite note ban with agriculture sector
doing exceptionally well, helping India retain the tag of world's
fastest growing major economy. The Central Statistics Office (CSO)
put the growth rate for October-December -- the quarter in which the
government banned 86 per cent of the currency in circulation -- at 7
per cent, compared to 7.4 per cent in the second quarter and 7.2 per
cent in the first quarter. The growth rate was on a higher base after
the CSO revised 2015-16 GDP growth rate to 7.9 per cent from the
earlier provisional estimate of 7.6 per cent. India's growth was
higher than China's 6.8 per cent for the October-December period of
2016. Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das said the CSO numbers
have vindicated the government's position and the criticism of note
ban was anecdotal and not supported by data. The CSO data revealed
that GVA (Gross Value Added)…