Farm, mining sectors cause 5-quarter low GDP growth of 6.6 per cent

However, India retained the tag of the fastest growing major economy as China posted a GDP growth of 6.4 per cent in the quarter ended December 2018. India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at constant prices (2011-12) had grown at 7.7 per cent in the October-December quarter of the previous financial year. The growth rate was revised upwards from 7 per cent.

The Central Statistics Office (CSO), which released the national account data for the third quarter, also revised downwards the growth estimate for the full fiscal (2018-19) to 7 per cent from 7.2 per cent. “GDP at Constant Prices in Q3 of 2018-19 is estimated at Rs 35 lakh crore, as against Rs 32.85 lakh crore in Q3 of 2017-18, showing a growth rate of 6.6 per cent,” it said.

The CSO also revised the GDP growth figures for April-June and July-September quarters of this fiscal to 8 per cent and 7 per cent from 8.2 per cent and 7.1 per cent, respectively. The GDP growth rates for April-June and July-September of the last fiscal were also revised to 6 per cent and 6.8 per cent from 5.6 per cent and 6.3 per cent, respectively.

During the third quarter of this fiscal, the gross value added (GVA) of the farm sector grew at 2.7 per cent compared to 4.6 per cent a year ago.