Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had tabled the Economic Survey in the Lok Sabha earlier this week, which projected that the Indian economy will by 6.8 yo 7.2 per cent in the fiscal year 2026-27. Though it is lower than 7.4 per cent estimated in the current fiscal, it affirms that India remains the fastest growing economy of the world, despite global uncertainty.
“The outlook, therefore, is one of steady growth amid global uncertainty, requiring caution, but not pessimism,” the document tabled by Sitharaman said. “With domestic drivers playing a dominant role and macroeconomic stability well anchored, the balance of risks around growth remains broadly even.”
However, the survey flagged concerns over fiscal populism in states and also pointed out that the agricultural sector is facing significant sustainability and productivity challenges, as it noted that the government should encourage voluntary crop diversification.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the Economic Survey has outlined the roadmap for a ‘viksit’ (developed) India and it reflects sustained growth. “It highlights strong macroeconomic fundamentals, sustained growth momentum and the expanding role of innovation, entrepreneurship and infrastructure in nation-building,” he said in an X post.
So, as India remains the fastest growing economy of the world, let’s take a look at the timeline of the Indian economy and understand how it has evolved over the time.
Mahalanobis and Planned economy (1953)
India had adopted a five-year plan to strengthen the Indian economy after Independence. Following the first five-year plan that focused on the agricultural sector, India adopted the Mahalanobis model for the second five-year plan. It was the brainchild of Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis, which pushed for investment in heavy industries and capital goods to provide employment opportunities. Thanks to this, companies such as BHEL, BEL, SAIL and others came into existence.
Green Revolution (1965)
The agricultural sector has always been the backbone of the Indian economy. Thus, under the leadership of Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, the agricultural sector was industrialised in 1965. The key architect for this was Dr MS Swaminathan. Under the green revolution, the focus was shifted to high-yielding variety of seeds (HYV) and modern tools such as the usage of tractors were promoted. This helped in increasing farmers’ income by nearly 70 per cent.
Nationalisation of Banks (1969)
A significant decision was taken by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1969 to nationalise 14 banks to make them more accessible for the people.
Economic Reforms (1991)
In 1991, under Prime Minister Narsimha Rao and then Union Finance Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, India introduced the LPG (liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation) policy. For this, India devalued rupee by 18 to 19 per cent to ease the Balance of Payment crisis. India also abolished the ‘License Raj’, which increased foreign investments. This ultimately helped India reduce import tariffs and integrate its economy with global markets.
Demonetisation (2016)
Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2016, India took a controversial decision to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes to tackle black money and make the country a cashless economy. This ultimately helped in people in getting used to cashless transactions and the focus was shifted to Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
GST (2017)
Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2017, India introduced the Goods and Services Tax (GST). It was a steps towards the implementation of ‘One tax, One nation’ that was aimed at tackle corruption and increasing transparency. In 2025, India also brought the GST reforms or GST 2.0, further simplifying the tax structure into three main slabs. The main aim of the GST is to ensure increase business opportunities.