(Cont.)

“On the domestic front, this year we have had sub-normal Southwest monsoons, which have obvious implications for agriculture growth and food prices. At the same time there have been widespread floods in some parts of the country. The wanton acts of terrorism in different parts of the country have kept the issue of personal security and loss of life and property in the limelight. It has resulted in a continuous drain on our resources and a distraction for our policy and programme implementation, particularly in the affected areas,” Pranab revealed.
” The recent months have witnessed some clear signs of a turnaround in the growth rate. In the first quarter (Q1) of 2009-10 the economy has recorded a growth rate of 6.1 against 5.8 per cent in the preceding two quarters of 2008-09. The industrial growth as captured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) has improved considerably in the months of June and July 2009, with growth increasing to 8.2 per cent and 7.2 per cent respectively, followed by 10.4 per cent in August 2009,” said Pranab while adding: “More importantly, the Foreign Institutional Investors who had recorded net outflows in 2008-09, have returned to the Indian market in the last five months. There is no dearth of liquidity in the economy and inflation as yet is not a pressing area of concern.”

Pranab said the two worst quarters since the global financial meltdown in September 2008 were behind, and the performance of the Indian economy reflects its basic resilience.

After visible signs of pickup in industrial growth in the last few months, there are some indications that growth of core industries may have moderated in September 2009. Some uncertainties related to the revival of the global economy also remain. We cannot therefore afford to drop our guard, the Finance Minister stated. (ANI)