Agriculture, manufacturing, construction and services,
were the key drivers of the sequential uptick in growth
in Q3, she added.
The gross valued added (GVA) for manufacturing in the
quarter under review grew at 8.9 per cent higher than
6.9 per cent in the previous quarter. Similarly, the
farm sector GVA grew at 4.1 per cent compared to 2.7 per
cent in the previous quarter. The construction sector
recorded a growth of 6.8 per cent, higher than 2.8 per
cent in previous quarter. The services segment including
financial services grew at rate of 6.7 per cent up from
6.4 per cent in previous quarter.
Most analysts do not expect a change in monetary policy
as they still anticipate the RBI, which is balancing
concern with inflation and support for growth, to hold
interest rates at its next policy meeting on April 5.
The GDP data could help Prime Minister Narendra Modi as
he gears up for the next Lok Sabha elections with
development and the creation of jobs as a major poll
plank.
Last week, Modi told industrialists that his government,
which has a "twin balance sheet" problem resulting from
bad debt in banks and many businesses, was determined to
put the economy back on a higher growth trajectory.M ODI
is trying to accelerate growth through higher state
spending, including Rs 2.1 lakh crore for
recapitalisation of state banks, which are beset with
mounting bad loans of nearly Rs 8.5 lakh crore.
He has stepped up spending on infrastructure and welfare
projects to boost growth ahead of national elections in
2019. This has widened the fiscal deficit for the
current fiscal year, ending in March, to 3.5 percent of
GDP, instead of the figure of 3.2 percent projected
earlier. The finance ministry said that the data
indicate a broad-based and significant acceleration of
real economic activity as projected in the Economic
Survey. "Robust growth in manufacturing and significant
acceleration in construction mark a turnaround in the
countrys economic growth momentum,'' the ministry said
in a statement.
Source::: Business Today,
dated 01/03/2018.