Remember how the world economy was hit by an unprecedented disruption last year, even as the Coronavirus Pandemic forced entire economies to go into lockdowns. India, a country of over 1.3 billion people, too had to impose repeated lockdowns in order to save all the lives that got risked by the deadly Pandemic. The most immediate casualty of the restrictions was, of course, the GDP growth.
However, India’s economy has bounced back almost magically with an unbelievable 20.1 percent jump in the GDP in the April-June quarter of the ongoing Financial Year. India’s Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a slew of landmark reforms last year. This was done in order to mitigate the hardships caused by the Pandemic. Sitharaman’s fascinating performance and policymaking have delivered evidently quantifiable results.
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has released data, stating, “GDP at Constant (2011-12) Prices in Q1 of 2021-22 is estimated at ₹ 32.38 lakh crore, as against ₹ 26.95 lakh crore in Q1 of 2020-21, showing a growth of 20.1 percent as compared to a contraction of 24.4 percent in Q1 2020-21.”
The GDP growth in the April-June quarter has been the largest since the mid-1990s when the government started releasing quarterly growth data. In the previous quarter, India’s GDP had recorded only 1.6% growth and therefore the rebound in the Indian economy has been sharp and almost unbelievable.
With a massive 20.1% jump in its GDP growth rate, we can be sure about one thing- India’s economy had moved beyond the temporary disruption created by the COVID-19 health emergency. In the months of April and May, India was hit by a devastating second wave of the Coronavirus Pandemic. Yet, accelerated manufacturing has ensured that the second wave of the Coronavirus Pandemic did not disrupt the economic recovery process.
Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic, there was a persistent danger of the economy slipping into a recession. However, despite all the baseless criticism directed against her, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman maintained a healthy pace of reforms like simplification of the labour laws, mining sector reforms and power sector reforms.
Moreover, the government’s effort to maintain enough liquidity by announcing a Rs. 20 lakh crore economic package last year seems to have played a major role in maintaining some measure of stability. The government reached out to help the poorest of the poor and also ensured that vulnerable businesses were given some kind of support at a time of acute crisis.
On account of Nirmala Sitharaman’s exemplary leadership, the Indian economy has found its way out of troubled waters. And this is easily verifiable in the form of India’s historic quarterly GDP growth rate.