The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth estimates are based on accepted “procedures, methodologies, and available data”, the Centre said on Tuesday after former Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian, in an article published by The Indian Express, said the projections between 2011-12 and 2016-17 were “overstated by 2.5 percentage points per year”. AdvertisingSubramanian said his research, published by Harvard University, found that the actual annual GDP growth rate may have been about 4.5 per cent, below the official estimates of 7 per cent. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), however, disagreed with the findings saying Subramanian’s overestimation of India’s GDP growth is primarily based on an analysis of indicators, like electricity consumption, two-wheeler sales, commercial vehicle sales using an econometric model and associated assumptions. “The estimation of GDP in any economy is a complex exercise where several measures and metrics are evolved to better measure the performance of the economy,” the MoSPI said in a statement. “The GDP estimates released by the Ministry are based on accepted procedures, methodologies and available data and objectively measure the contribution of various sectors in the economy,” it added.

Source: Indian Express June 11, 2019 16:07 UTC