Former prime minister Manmohan Singh said on Friday, 29 November, that the GDP growth rate of 4.5 percent was unacceptable and worrisome, and urged his successor Narendra Modi to set aside “deep-rooted suspicion” of society and nurse India back to being a harmonious, mutually trustworthy society that can help the economy soar.
Shortly before the former PM spoke at National Conclave on Economy at Jawahar Bhawan, the National Statistics Office (NSO) stated that the country's GDP for the month of July-September stood at 4.5 percent.
The previous low was recorded at 4.3 percent in the January-March period of 2012-13. GDP growth was registered at 7 percent in the corresponding quarter of 2018-19.
“The government has positioned itself as some saviour, resorting to foolhardy moral-policing policies such as demonetisation, that have proved to be disastrous.”Manmohan Singh, Former Prime Minsiter
“For economic growth to revive, it is very important that the government enthuses trust and confidence. It is very important for businessmen, capital providers and workers to feel confident and exuberant rather than being fearful and nervous,” he continued.
The sharpest fall in growth came in the manufacturing sector which recorded a negative growth of 0.1 percent against 6.9 percent growth in the same quarter previous fiscal year.
‘BJP Govt Sees Everything Via Tainted Prism of Distrust’
The ex-PM continued: “This toxic combination of deep distrust, pervasive fear and a sense of hopelessness in our society is stifling economic activity and hence economic growth.
Lashing out at the government's dealing with the current economic state, he said, “The Modi government seems to view everything and everyone through a tainted prism of suspicion and distrust through which, every policy of previous governments was considered of bad intent, every loan sanctioned was undeserving, every new industrial project was crony in nature and so on.”
Singh said that mutual trust is the bedrock of societal transactions fostering economic growth, but “our social fabric of trust, confidence is now torn and ruptured.”
Earlier, Congress’ Randeep Surjewala also spoke about the abysmal GDP data saying, “The bankruptcy has led to the current state of economic recession in India.”
Opposition Leaders Lampoon the Centre
Leaders from various Opposition parties also lampooned the Centre on twitter after the NSO declared that the country's GDP for the month of July-September stood at 4.5 percent.
Communist leader Sitaram Yechury took potshots at the PM on Twitter saying that Pakodanomics will manufacture disaster.
Meanwhile former finance minister P Chidambaram’s family tweeted on his behalf as he predicted that Q3 will be much worse that Q2.
DMK leader MK Stalin tweeted saying the economic crisis is of unprecedented proportions and the government needs to take strong measures.
Meanwhile, Asaduddin Owaisi, President of AIMIM, tweeted saying the new measure of growth is NRC, Article 370, and religion-based citizenship.
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