The Economic Survey tabled in parliament on Thursday has laid down a blue print for visualising the dream of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make India a five trillion dollar economy by 2025.
In the Economic Survey 2018-19 tabled in parliament by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman, the focus is on ‘shifting of gears’ to attain sustained economic growth for the five trillion-goal in 2024-25. It says that a GDP growth rate of eight per cent has to be maintained to reach this target.
The economic survey deviates from the traditional thinking of economics and views it in a virtuous cycle. As such the concept of equilibrium in economics has not been taken up. Instead of viewing the priorities and economic challenges as separate entities, the Economic Survey views these challenges of jobs, demand, exports as complimentary.
The survey highlights that building up a virtuous cycle of investment, particularly private investment. It says that private investment will drive demand, increase labour productivity, create capacity and generate new jobs.
It also says that the focus should be on enhancing MSMEs for creating more jobs and becoming more productive. The Economic Survey also mentions that the economy of the country had performed well in the last five years and that the benefits of growth had reached all sections of the society.
Noting that when the world economy grew at 3.6 per cent in 2014 and 2018, the survey says that the country had taken a major leap and became the sixth largest economy by maintaining growths much higher than neighbouring China. It also said that the inflation rate in the last five years was much less than the earlier years.
Another thing that the survey points out is that Aadhar Act 2016 has helped in delivering the benefits to the lowest section of the society. It also said that various programmes envisaged by the Government had reached the maximum people. The survey also points out that fiscal federalism had helped in strengthening the economy.
