For those who can read Urdu excellent article. India’s growth rate is close to zero. Very good analysis. Written by an Indian.
https://www.bbc.com/urdu/regional-49548150
The same article in English.
Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image caption'If the growth rate of the unorganized sector is declining then it would be wrong to assume that the unorganized sector is developing at the pace of the organized sector'
Five quarters (15 months) ago, India's economy was growing at eight per cent, which has fallen to five per cent now and that has not happened suddenly.
One more thing I would like to mention is that it is less than five percent as quarterly growth rate statistics are organized and corporate based.
It does not fully cover the unorganized sector of the domestic economy and it is assumed that the unorganized sector is also developing at the same pace as the organized sector.
But there are reports of economic slowdown from all around. In Ludhiana, unorganized sectors associated with industries such as bicycles and shoes in Agra have closed.
Also read
Why does India want to borrow from the global market?
How true is India's claims for economic growth?
Why the Modi government is forced to take billions of dollars from the RBI?
If the growth rate of the unorganized sector is declining then it would be wrong to assume that the unorganized sector is developing at the pace of the organized sector.
In the unorganized sector of India, 94% of the people work where 45% of the production is done. If 94% of the people work and there are decreasing production and employment, then the demand decreases.
Demand had only begun after 'de monetisation'. Then after eight months the effects of GST started to appear and then the effects of NPA (non-performing assets) of the banks started to appear. And after all, the impact of the crisis on non-banking financial companies.
That is, in three years, the economy has experienced three major shocks which have led to unemployment. CMI data shows that the number of employees in the country was 45 million, which has dropped to 41 million.
Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image caption: India's finance minister have several announcements to improve the economy recently
This means that four million people have lost their jobs or have become unemployed. When the revenue of such a large portion decreases, the demand will obviously decrease. When demand is low, consumer capacity will decrease and investment will decrease when consumer capacity is reduced.
Why did the demand decrease?
The investment rate in our economy was the highest in 2012-13. At that time the investment rate was growing at 37% and today it has been less than 30%.
Unless investment increases, growth does not increase.
I think the problem started with the unorganized sector and now it is slowly affecting the organized sector as well. For example, you can look at automobile and FMCG fields.
You may have heard of a drop in demand for parley g biscuits. This is a well-organized department that is used by people in the unorganized sector. When the revenue of the unorganized sector is low, demand will automatically decrease. This is the case with FMCG.
Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image caption Theeffects of slowdown on the economy are beginning to appear first on the unorganized sector
The reality of the official data
If our economy is growing at a rate of six or five percent, that's a good pace. Even then, why consumption was decreasing it should increase. Investment should also have increased at the pace of five per cent.
When consumption is reduced, investment is not increasing, which shows that the economic growth rate is not five, six or seven percent, but it is growing at zero percent because it is irregular. Sector statistics are not included.
The day you add the unstructured sector stats shows that the growth rate is zero or one percent. Unstructured sector statistics are collected once every five years. In the meantime it is understood that the unorganized sector is developing at the same pace as the organized sector.
This speculation was fine even before the demonetization, but it did have a big impact later on. This has had its first impact on the unorganized sectors.
This method of incorporating unorganized sector growth estimates into GDP data after November 9, 2016 is incorrect.
It is also said that the Indian economy is in recession. According to official data, the economy is not going through a recession but a slowdown. When growth rates are negative, this situation is considered as recession.
But if the data presented by the government is included in the unstructured sector statistics, the Indian economy is in recession.
Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image captionA nationwide strike was organized in opposition to the GST
The integration of GST and banks
The unorganized sector was badly affected after the demonetization or closure of notes. The GST was then implemented. Although GST does not apply to unorganized sectors.
GST has had an impact on the organized sector. Over the last two and a half years since the implementation of GST, more than 1,400 changes have been made. This created a lot of confusion among the people in the organized sector.
People are not able to enter GST. About 1.2 million people have registered for GST, but only 70 million people pay GST and only 20% of annual returns are filed.
As a result, the GST as a whole has suffered tremendous damage to the economy.
The problem starts with the unorganized sector and the organized sector is no exception. The slowdown in the economy has slowed the government's tax collection. Last year, GST was reduced by 80,000 crores and direct tax was also reduced.
Overall, the state exchequer suffered a loss of Rs 1.6 lakh crore. When the government's income declined, its expenses decreased. When costs are low, recession will be even higher.
Now, it is being said that the integration of banks will strengthen the economy. But this is wrong. The impact of the merger of banks will be seen five to ten years later. It will not have immediate effect.
Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image caption'Government statements make it clear that the economy has weakened and packages are being announced one after another'
Government acknowledges
Government statements make it clear that it has acknowledged that the economy has weakened and packages are being announced one after another. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is also announcing.
They are not talking about recession right now but will gradually start talking about recession when the unorganized sector data is added.
RBI has released a package of Rs 1.76 lakh crore. It will also be used for the organized sector. No package has been announced for the unorganized sector. No package increase has been announced.
Where the problem started, the government is not paying attention to these areas. Until the package is announced for these fields, no improvement will be seen.
( Interview with BBC Hindi correspondent Sandeep Rai )