GDP contraction: Shiv Sena slams Centre for 'skewed priorities', seeks economic revival

A day after India's Gross Domestic Product contracted by 23.9% in the first quarter of 2020-21, Shiv Sena on Tuesday took a jibe at the Central government. Sena Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi contended that the present economic situation was not an "Act of God" but a result of skewed policies by the Union government. Speaking after the 41st GST Council meeting on August 27, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had observed that the economy is facing an extraordinary "Act of God" situation.

Moreover, Chaturvedi claimed that the economy was in bad shape even before the advent of the COVID-19 crisis. According to her, it was imperative to ensure the revival of the economy. All sectors barring for agriculture have recorded negative GDP growth during the April-June quarter. India is among the economies worst hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Read: Priyanka Gandhi Attacks Centre Over GDP; Highlights Rahul Gandhi's 'economic Tsunami' Jibe

Limited data sources

Currently, there are 36,91,166 confirmed novel coronavirus cases in India out of which 28,39,882 patients have been discharged while 65,288 fatalities have been reported. The Centre noted that restrictions were imposed on non-essential economic activities and movement of people from March 25 to contain the spread of COVID-19. It maintained that this had an impact on economic activities as well as data collection mechanisms.

Mentioning that the timeline for filing statutory returns had been extended, it revealed that the usual data sources were substituted by limited alternatives like GST and interaction with professional bodies. In this background, the Union government hinted that the GDP estimates are likely to undergo revision in due course. Meanwhile, the GST estimates for the July-September quarter shall be released on November 27. 

Read: Chidambaram Slams Govt Over GDP Fall, Says 'will Take Months To Register Positive Growth'

COVID-19 crisis in India

At present, there are 7,85,996 active cases in India. With 65,081 COVID-19 patients getting cured in the last 24 hours, the country's recovery rate stands at 77%. The number of recovered cases outnumber active cases by over 20.53 lakh. After 10,16,920 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours, the number of tests done in India has increased to 4,33,24,834. Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra account for nearly 34% of the overall number of COVID-19 tests conducted in the country. 

Read: 'Worst GDP In India's History': Rahul Gandhi Castigates Centre For Ignoring March Warning