By Abdul Bari Masoud
New Delhi: Reacting on the Economic Survey 2017-18, senior Congress Leader and former Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram said on Monday that it has brought to surface the “internal contradictions” within the government. It is a depressing report of the fiscal year that will come to an end in two months and the growth rate will be between 6 and 6.5 percent not 7.5 percent as claimed the by the government.
Highlighting the main points of the Survey, he said the BJP-led government has admitted that it has failed to address the challenges in education, employment, and agriculture.
The conclusion on the state of agriculture is depressing. After four years, “the level of real agricultural growth and real agricultural revenues has remained constant. It is clear that Agriculture has been left in the lurch,” he said.
He contested the 7.5 percent growth rate claims made in the Survey saying it offers little evidence in support of this claim. He said the year is likely to end with a growth rate of between 6 and 6.5 percent.
It also admits that the major programmes are undertaken by the government (toilets, Jan Dhan accounts, LPG connections, and village electrification) have not resulted in tangible outcomes, said the former Finance minister and adding that the future course of the economy is conditional on many ifs. “The outlook is therefore uncertain, if not bleak”.
The Survey admits to the two underlying macroeconomic vulnerabilities — fiscal deficit and current account deficit and hints at slower consolidation. This admission belies the government’s claim of ‘sound macroeconomic fundamentals’, he said.
The Survey has also thrown the burden on private investments and exports as the government has thrown in the towel and hopes that the private sector will come to the rescue of the economy! There is not much gas left in the government, he said.