Ahead of the annual Budget presentation on February 01, The Ministry of Finance and Corporate Affairs tabled the Economic Survey for the current financial year 2021-2022 on Monday. Principal Economic Advisor Sanjeev Sanyal while suggesting a revival in economic activities to pre-pandemic levels stated that the economy grew by 9.2% this year after suffering a contraction of 7.3% last year.
The key takeaway from the survey indicates ideal economic recovery after the pandemic to pre-pandemic levels of growth in almost every sector. The Agriculture and allied services, which were least affected during the pandemic (considering the extent of the rise in positive cases mostly in urban areas) have overturned the recovery above a hundred per cent than FY 2019-20.
The industrial sector which includes construction, mining, manufacturing and supply of essential services like electricity, gas, etc has done a remarkable growth registering stats at par with pre-Covid-19 years. PEA Sanjeev Sanyal who headed the committee on the survey has said that this year the Economic Survey has been presented in two volumes – while the first looks at overall macroeconomic and sectoral developments, the second volume contains a dedicated revamped statistical appendix.
Indian Economy is estimated to have crossed the pre-pandemic level in 2021-22 with 9.2% growth (AE). Contact intensive services still impacted. #EconomicSurvey2022 #EconomicSurvey (2/16) @FinMinIndia @PIB_India @nsitharamanoffc pic.twitter.com/XuGNEXWnWZ
— Sanjeev Sanyal (@sanjeevsanyal) January 31, 2022
The statistics included in the second volume of the survey indicate a dynamic nature of development happening across sectors with the rise in infrastructure projects, an increase in forex reserves, an overall increase in the number of business establishments and Start-Ups, improvement in fiscal position and vaccination statistics. The survey forecasts a GDP growth of 8.0-8.5% in the financial year 2022-23. Earlier, the International Monetary Fund had projected India’s growth at 9% making the country the fastest-growing economy.
The factors indicating micro-economic stability look healthy amidst the rising inflation and instability in many countries. The country’s forex reserves have strategically increased over the years and have recorded the highest at the US $635bn in the second quarter of the financial year.
There has been a sharp increase in start-up establishments across India in 2021-22. There are at least 555 districts in the country with at least one registered startup. This year, India became the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world after US & China.
Despite increased expenditure in health & infrastructure sectors, strong growth in Tax and Non-tax revenue have improved the fiscal position of the country. The increase in Capital Expenditure was a calculated policy decision taken last year so as to increase spending with a view to putting money in the economy.
The Principal Economic Advisor, while putting the Vaccination statistics upfront has said that over the course of a year, starting from January 15 last year, India has delivered a total of 157 crore doses that covered 91 crore people with at least 1 dose and 66 crore people fully vaccinated.
Through the Jal Jeevan Mission of PM Narendra Modi, which aims at giving direct tap water connections to households, The Economic Survey has recorded a stellar increase in ten years from 2011 to 2021. From 2019, impressive progress in providing tap connections to households has been recorded.
The graphic shows the expansion of national highways from an overall 71,772 km in 2011 to 1,40,152 km in 2021. The increase in highway density indicates that the nation has built twice the highways since 2021, as compared to highways built since Independence. Ramping up infrastructure to enhance connectivity has been one of the many successful policy implementations of the two successive Modi Governments since 2014.
The Economic Survey shows the number of operationalized airports increased from 62 in 2016 to 130 in 2021. The Central Government started UDAN as a regional airport development programme with a view to enhancing regional connectivity by upgrading underserviced air routes.
The above statistics not only indicate that the economy is on its way to recovery from the pandemic decline but it also showcases the successful implementation of long-term government policies in ensuring overall welfare and infrastructure.
