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Why India’s economic data has sparked a furore

From The Guardian · () English

Summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Analysis Named sources Context piece
  • India reported 7.8% GDP growth for the latest quarter, above the 7% forecast, prompting a heated debate over the reliability of the figures.
  • Former finance secretary Subhash Garg said revisions to the previous year's current-price GDP inflated the latest result and estimated real growth at 2.6%.
  • The dispute has renewed concerns about the credibility of India's statistical system, which once enjoyed broad respect.

India's latest GDP figures were meant to showcase strong economic performance. Instead, they have opened a fierce argument over whether the country's statistical system can still be trusted.

The government reported 7.8% growth for the latest quarter, beating the 7% forecast. The figure was celebrated by Narendra Modi as a “herculean feat,” but it quickly drew criticism from Subhash Garg, a former finance secretary who served under Modi's government and is now a critic.

Garg argues that the headline number is misleading. He says the government revised last year's current-price GDP downward, making this year's growth appear larger. On his calculation, actual growth was only 2.6%.

The dispute reaches beyond one quarterly release. India once took pride in economic and social data that commanded respect for its rigor. The backlash over the latest figures suggests that confidence in those numbers has weakened, at a time when GDP growth remains central to the government's economic narrative.

herculean feat

· Narendra ModiModi used the phrase to describe the reported quarterly GDP growth.
About this summary

Originally published by The Guardian. Summarized and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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