Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has given an important statement on the strength of the Indian economy on Tuesday. He said that India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world today and this pace will soon make us the third largest economic power in the world. Speaking to the students at Delhi School of Economics, he said that today India is standing firmly on its feet on the basis of its economic strength.
Preparation from 10th to 5th… and now the third largest economy
Highlighting this economic journey, the Finance Minister said, “What makes us different is that from being the 10th largest economy in 2014, we have now become the fifth and then the fourth largest economy.” He expressed confidence that India will “probably reach third place soon”.
Not just statistics, the standard of living of 2.5 crore people improved
He clarified that this progress is not limited to figures alone. The efforts of the government have so far succeeded in bringing 2.5 crore people out of the situation of multidimensional poverty. In measuring this poverty, not only income but many important aspects like education, health and standard of living are also considered.
How did the country’s banks overcome the challenge of ‘double bookkeeping’?
The Finance Minister also mentioned the role of banks in the economic health of the country. He said that today the balance sheets of public sector banks are much stronger than the ‘double bookkeeping problem’ of seven-eight years ago. He explained that ‘double bookkeeping’ was a serious situation in which companies had huge debts and were not able to repay them, due to which the NPA (non-performing loans) of banks was increasing. Banks have now recovered from this pressure.
trust in government treasury
Along with economic progress, the government also focuses on financial discipline. Sitharaman expressed confidence that the government will be successful in achieving the set target of 4.4 percent fiscal deficit in the current financial year 2025-26. The central government has estimated the fiscal deficit at 4.4 percent of GDP (Rs 15.69 lakh crore) for this financial year.