Indian economy’s best is yet to come: Jaitley : Hindustan Times

FM says much has been achieved, but country still has a long way to go

NEW DELHI: India may have become the world’s fastest-growing major economy, but it is still in “recovery mode” and the best is yet to come, finance minister Arun Jaitley said on Friday.

VIPIN KUMAR/HT

FM Arun Jaitley at the meeting to review the performance of public sector banks and financial institutions, on Friday.

The Indian economy grew 7.3% in 2014-15, measured by a controversial new formula, while quarterly growth of 7% between January and March outpaced China’s 7% expansion, indicating that Asia’s third-largest economy was coming out of its worst slowdown in 25 years.

“The best in our economy is yet to come,” Jaitley told HT in an exclusive interview. “If you have a 39.5% jump in indirect tax revenue—customs, excise and service tax— it is actually indicative of increased economic activity. That’s the best yardstick.”

Jaitley, who met bank CEOs earlier in the day, said a huge jump in indirect taxation revenues in the first two months of this fiscal year indicated a turnaround in the economy.

The finance minister also slammed the Congress, saying it had positioned itself as “against development and growth” by opposing reform measures such as the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill. “The Congress wants to present itself in that light. Otherwise, having pioneered GST, there is no reason for them to oppose it,” he said.

Jaitley said the government would soon notify the “compliance window” for people to disclose hidden assets stashed overseas.

“The period [of compliance] we will notify. It is different from the voluntary disclosure of income scheme (VDIS). In VDIS you just paid the tax after making a disclosure. Here it is a new tax that is being imposed. It is a fresh taxation measure on an undisclosed asset,” he said. “Those who do not have undisclosed assets outside the country have nothing to fear.”

He said it was a “very chall enging t ask” f or I ndia to improve its rankings from 142 to 50 by 2016 in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business report. “Many procedures have been simplified in many ministries. But I would say it is still a work in progress.”