New Delhi: Niti Aayog vice-chairperson Arvind Panagariya has refused to be drawn into the discussion that the GDP growth has been impacted by the demonetisation exercise, as he said on Friday that the economy which had been in a fragile state three years back, has been turned around and eight per cent growth will be a possibility in the near future.
Speaking at a press conference on highlighting Niti Aayog’s achievements over the past three years of the NDA government, Mr Panagariya said that the Narendra Modi dispensation had inherited a “fragile” economy.
However India will grow at 7.5 per cent in the current fiscal and by the time the tenure of the government comes to an end in 2019, it will even touch the 8 per cent growth mark.
His remarks came days after India’s GDP stood at 7.1 per cent in 2016-17, a three-year low. During the January-March quarter, the GDP was 6.1 per cent compared to China’s 6.9 per cent during the same period.
Touching upon a host of issues, the Niti Aayog vice chairperson also dismissed the growing concern over job losses, especially in the IT sector, saying that the solution to the problem is to chart out policies which encourage labour-intensive industries in the country.
He referred to data given by Nasscom, informing media persons that in the last three years, the Indian IT sector has added six lakh jobs and in the next, eight to ten years, around 30 lakh jobs will be created. He dismissed robophobia or the fear of automation leading to job losses.
On the lack of credible jobs data, Mr Panagariya said that the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) has already begun collecting data for the first ever annual household employment survey.
This survey will measure rural plus urban employment per household across the country on an annual basis besides also generating data on quarterly urban employment.
