Associate Professor in the Department of Economics at Monash University and eminent Economist Dr Vinod Mishra told SBS Hindi that the June quarter figure is good news but we must be mindful of not getting carried away.
"This is the result of just one quarter and we don’t know whether this level of growth will be sustained. If indeed it is sustained then it will be very good news for the Indian economy. But we should be cautiously optimistic."
Dr Mishra told SBS Hindi that the sectors registering biggest growths in the June quarter were construction and manufacturing, public administration and defence sector. At the second tier were electricity, water, gas supply, and other utility services and slightly below these were trade, hotel, transport, communication, and broadcasting services.
Dr Mishra also explained why the rupee has taken such a big hit this year.
"Crude oil prices have risen by nearly 7% and India is a big importer of crude oil and a lot depends on crude oil. So whenever crude oil prices rise your import bill increases and if the import bill increases your currency goes down. Second, Turkey’s currency Lira also fell very quickly and that has impacted currencies of emerging markets."
Dr Mishra also mentioned that the American economy tightened its monetary policy in 2018 and it is expected that it will continue to be so in 2018-2019. He feels that these three factors have created a downward pressure on the rupee.
The rupee hit its lowest ever point against the dollar this month breaching the Rs 72 mark. Petrol and diesel prices have also increased to record highs in India. In Mumbai, diesel is costing over Rs 78 per liter while petrol is almost touching Rs 90 per liter.
Congress party workers stage a protest against BJP lead Narendra Modi Central government against Petrol and Diesel Price Hike, Bangalore, 10th Sept 2018. Source: AAP
Nationwide protests were held on 10th September against the record high petrol and diesel costs; government offices, business and schools were closed in many parts of the country.
The opposition Congress party and Left Front called for a Bharat bandh (nationwide protest) to protest fuel price rise. The Bandh was supported by several other opposition parties like JDS (Janata Dal-Secular), SP (Samajwadi Party) DMK, RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal) and MNS.
Some netizens also expressed their anger against the fuel price rise
