NEW DELHI: India’s economy contracted by 7.7 percent in the 2020-21 financial year, battered by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report released Friday.
The government survey cited by the Press Trust of India news agency estimates the economy will bounce back, growing 11 percent in the fiscal year that begins in April.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the report to Parliament on Friday. She will present the national budget for 2021-22 on Monday.
India’s economy contracted at a 7.5 percent annual pace in the July-September quarter following a record slump of nearly 24 percent in the previous three months that pulled the country into a recession. India last suffered a recession in 1979-80 after an oil shock.
A country enters a technical recession if its economy contracts for two successive quarters. India last suffered a recession in 1979-80 after an oil shock.
The downturn followed a strict two-month lockdown imposed across the country beginning in March to combat the pandemic. It triggered massive unemployment in small and medium-sized businesses and left farmers in distress.
The government has sought to cushion the blow from the lockdowns and virus outbreaks, introducing a $266 billion package in May to boost consumer demand and manufacturing. A large part of the package was actually loans provided by banks, many of them without collateral.
That was followed by a $35.14 billion package early this month to stimulate the economy by boosting jobs, consumer demand, manufacturing, agriculture and exports hit by the coronavirus pandemic.
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