The Government in February told Parliament that the Indian economy is not in recession, quoting IMF projections saying India continues to be among the world’s fastest-growing economies and its GDP is estimated to grow at 5.8 per cent in 2020-21 and it will surpass China with a growth rate of 6.5 per cent in 2021-22. “The economy is not in recession. As per the National Statistical Office (NSO), GDP growth, on average, was 7.5 per cent in 2014-19, which is the highest amongst G20 countries. As per the IMF estimates, India continues to be among the fastest growing economies in the world and its GDP is estimated to grow at 5.8 per cent in 2020-21 and is further projected to surpass China with a growth rate of 6.5 per cent in 2021-22,” Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur told the Lok Sabha in a written reply.

He said that the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) has improved as it registered a positive growth of 1.8 per cent in November 2019 as compared to a contraction of 4 per cent in October 2019 and 4.3 per cent in September 2019. Contraction in September 2019 was the lowest point in the last six years.

The trends for coal, real estate, power, mining, automobiles, steel sectors of Indian economy do not indicate recession, the minister added. Thakur said food inflation as indicated by Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI) has shown an uptick and has increased to 5.3 per cent in 2019-20 (April-December) from 0.5 per cent in 2018-19 (April-December).