Govt estimates 5.8 pc GDP growth

In absolute terms, the GDP for the current fiscal is estimated at the level of Rs 11,09,983 crore at 1993-94. The GDP for previous fiscal has been estimated at Rs 10,49,191 crore.

The Net National Product (NNP) was estimated at Rs 9,79,573 crore for the current fiscal as compared to Rs 9,26,420 crore in 1997-98. With this, the national income will register a growth of 5.7 per cent as compared to 4.8 per cent in the previousfiscal.

The per capita income at 1993-94 prices is estimated to be Rs 10,047 as compared to Rs 9,660 as per capita for the previous year. The most important sector, manufacturing is likely to achieve lesser growth of 5.7 per cent as compared to 6.8 per cent during 1997-98.

The growth for electricity, gas and water supply is likely to be a shade lower at 6.3 per cent as against the earlier released quick estimates which had put the growth at 6.6 per cent for the previous fiscal. Mining and Quarrying is likely to show a substantial deceleration in growth rate to 0.1 per cent from the previous year’s growth rate of 2.7 per cent.

A major turnaround has been estimated for the agriculture, forestry and fishing group which is estimated to achieve a growth of 5.3 per cent at 1993-94 prices as compared to the previous year’s negative growth in the sector which stood at (-) 1.0 per cent.

In volume terms, the CSO has said that the production of food grains during the current fiscal is likely to grow by 1.5 percent and achieve 195.25 million tonne as compared to 192.43 million tonne in the previous fiscal. This estimate is based on the information furnished by the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, said the minister.

Production of rice and coarse cereals is expected to decline by 0.1 per cent and 6.6 per cent during the current fiscal. In the service sector, trade, transport and communications sector is estimated to grow at 6.8 per cent as compared to the previous year’s growth rate of 5.7 per cent.

The growth in this sector would mainly be on account of increase of the GDP of trade sector which is estimated on the basis of volume of goods transacted. At the same time, financing, insurance, real estate and business services is estimated to show a deceleration in the growth rate to 7.7 per cent in the current fiscal as compared to 8.4 per cent in the previous fiscal. This is estimated to come about mainly due to the higher rate of inflation in terms of wholesale price index in the current fiscal ascompared to that of the last financial year.

The lesser growth rate anticipated in the area of community, social and personal services sector is mainly due to higher wages drawn by government employees during the previous fiscal.