Economic survey pegs FY’12 GDP growth at 6.9 per cent

The Indian economy is estimated to grow at a reduced pace of 6.9 per cent in 2011-12, the slowest in the past ten years beginning FY'03, except during the global economic downturn in 2008-09 when its GDP grew at 6.7 per cent.

The Economic Survey 2011-12, presented by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee in the Lok Sabha, however, projects a GDP growth of 7.6 per cent in the coming financial year 2012-13 and 8.6 per cent in 2013-14.

With agriculture and the service sector continuing to perform well, the slowdown can be attributed almost entirely to slackening of industrial production.

In fact, according to the survey, even the 6.9 per cent growth has been made possible by a 9.4 per cent growth in service sector.

''The service sector continues to be a star performer as its share in GDP has climbed from 58 per cent in 2010-11 to 59 per cent in 2011-12 with a growth rate of 9.4 per cent,'' the survey commented.

Similarly, with a record foodgrain production of 250.40 million tones, agriculture and allied sectors are estimated to grow at 2.5 per cent in 2011-12. This has been achieved through an increase in the production of rice in some northeastern states.