India’s Finance Minister addresses International Monetary Fund

WASHINGTON (Diya TV) — Arun Jaitley, India’s Finance Minister, said the country is “aspiring to do better in an adverse” environment, and has the world’s attention now more than ever with its rapidly developing economy, but cautioned that by its own yardstick, the country’s current growth rate is not enough.

The comments were made as Jaitley addressed the annual fall meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, adding that there is a multitude of “global buzz” about India and what’s happening in the country.

“More than even before we are at the center stage. That you would have to admit. But, I would put a caveat. India has become far more aspirational than ever before. So compared to the rest of the world, we are doing much better. Compared to our own yardstick, we feel, this is not enough,” he told reporters.

“We can do still better, which in a sense is not a bad thing to happen. To be restless, to be impatient is a sign of wanting to do better.

“For the rest of the world whereas we aspire to do better in this adverse environment, they consider it extremely impressive. So there is a lot of global buzz around India,” he said.

Per the latest forecast by the IMF and the World Bank, India is projected to grow at 7.6 percent in the next two years, which makes it the world’s fastest growing emerging economy.

“I think with the kind of investments, both domestic and international, that we are getting, a reasonable amount of growth will always be there. If growth returns to the world, then you would probably move up. Structural reforms like GST can only add to that,” Jaitley said.

“India’s GDP will continue to expand at the fastest pace among major economies, with growth forecast at 7.6 percent in 2016–17,” the International Monetary Fund said, which is an increase from its original July projections.

“India’s economy continued to recover strongly, benefiting from a large improvement in the terms of trade, effective policy actions, and stronger external buffers, which have helped boost sentiment,” the IMF said in its latest report.