Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said the government was making every effort to be on track to reach its goal of making India a $5 trillion economy in the stipulated timeline.

In order to spur growth, the government is trying to frontload infrastructure spend as much as possible, she told the India Economic Conclave in an address delivered through satellite link.

The FM’s statement came days after official data showed India’s economic growth slumped to over six-year low in July-September quarter at 4.5 per cent. In order to reach the $5 trillion GDP goal by 2025, India needs to grow nearly triple that rate from here on.

Sitharaman said the government was pushing hard on plans that have a bearing on the rural economy. “It is ensuring suitable stimulus to improve consumption in the economy,” she said.

The government is also seeing a below-par GST collection. Sitharaman said the growth in GST collection has lagged target due to various factors and the Centre has been working with the states to improve collections.

On its part, the Centre defaulted on bimonthly compensation payment due in October without any notice or explanation. Another bimonthly payment is due in December.

Sitharaman said the government was working to ensure that it pays dues to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) on time. “Rs 61,000 crore dues to MSMEs from the government are being released,” Sitharaman said

The Finance Minister said she was in constant touch with industry leaders and keeping tabs on various sectors to see where and if any intervention is needed.

The Finance Minister did not agree reforms carried out over the past few years have not worked. “Demonetisation, GST rollout and bank mergers are major reforms that are having an impact at various layers of the economy. They also made sure the economy gets more formalised,” she insisted.

Published On : 16-12-2019

Source : Economic Times