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Economy in Bad Shape, NDA Exaggerating Numbers, Says Congress

News18.com

First published: January 30, 2017, 5:33 PM IST | Updated: 4 mins ago

Former PM Manmohan Singh addressed a press conference releasing a report on the state of economy. (Photo: CNN-News18)

New Delhi: Former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Monday released a document on the state of the Indian economy a day before the presentation of the Economic Survey and warned the NDA government that the economy was not in a good shape.

Addressing a press conference with former finance minister P Chidambaram and Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Gowda, Manmohan Singh said: “The growth rate for this fiscal year will be 6.6% as against 7.6% predicted by the BJP.”

Chidambaram alleged that the NDA government believed “exaggerated numbers” will help, but “people cannot be dazzled by mere numbers”.

Urging everybody to read the document, Chidambaram questioned the NDA government over jobs and capital investments.

“Ask yourself where the jobs are? Where is the credit growth? The answer is it is lowest in several decades. People of India are entitled to seriously question the conclusion,” Chidambaram said.

“In 2008, when the world was reeling under recession,” Chidambaram said, “growth rate was at 8.5% per year… when the world economy was suffering even then the UPA was able to manage a growth rate of more than 7%.”

Talking on the poll promises made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rajeev Gowda said: “PM Modi and BJP promised 2 crore jobs during their campaign. In 2010, we had created 11 lakh new jobs. If you want to create new jobs you need investments.”

“Government is taking shelter under the indirect taxes and hurting poor the most,” he said.