Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran said that growth is being supported by strong domestic fundamentals, including consumption and investment.
Chief Economic Advisor, V Anantha Nageswaran, on Thursday said India’s employment conditions have improved since the launch of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS). Nageswaran said that unemployment rate has declined from 6 per cent then to 3.2 per cent in 2023–24.
“The PLFS earlier followed a July-to-June cycle and is now shifting to a calendar-year-based cycle. Therefore, data for 2025 will be released sometime in March, which is why we are showing the 2023–24 data. Female labour force participation has increased by nearly 18 percentage points, and the unemployment rate in the first nine months of the year has steadily declined from 5.4 per cent to 4.9 per cent in the last quarter,”
While giving a detailed presentation on the Economic Survey, CEA said the Real GDP growth has improved steadily, rising from an average of 6.4 per cent during FY12-FY20 to 6.5 per cent in FY25, and is projected to accelerate further to 7.4 per cent in FY26.
“If you look at the last few years in comparison to pre-COVID average, real GDP growth pre-COVID was 6.4 per cent and in FY 25 was 6.5 per cent and this year it is predicted to be 7.4 per cent,” he said.
The CEA said that growth is being supported by strong domestic fundamentals, including consumption and investment.
“Private consumption expenditure (PFCE) growth remains resilient, increasing from 6.8 per cent in FY12-FY20 to 7.2 per cent in FY25, before moderating slightly to 7.0 per cent in FY26. Meanwhile, investment activity has picked up sharply, with real Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) growth rising from 6.3% in FY12-FY20 to 7.1 per cent in FY25, and further to 7.8 per cent in FY26, underscoring sustained capital formation,” he said.
On the inflation front, CEA Nageswaran highlighted that the price pressures have softened significantly. Headline CPI inflation declined from 6.7 per cent in FY23 to 5.4 per cent in FY24, easing further to 4.7 per cent in FY25, and dropping to 1.7 per cent in FY26 (up to December). Core inflation (excluding gold and silver) also moderated, falling from 6.1% in FY23 to 3.0% in FY25, before edging up to 2.9 per cent in FY26 (up to December).
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