Debate on GDP a positive sign for politics

India is witnessing a pleasant change in its public discourse and the credit for it should go partly to former finance secretary Subhash Chandra Garg. The debate was about whether the GDP data provided by the central government was genuine. The government has proudly announced that the GDP growth in the April-June quarter was 7.8%. On the face of it, this looks impressive and hints at robust economic growth. But before the government could celebrate, Garg, while speaking on TV channels, announced that the figure of 7.8% is misleading.

He claimed that if one carefully processes the government’s own data, then the number is much lower. He, in fact, claimed that, based on government data, the real GDP could be zero and the nominal GDP as low as 2.6%. Obviously, the government was livid. Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goel called him an unemployed person who joins TV debates to weaken the government. But Garg was un stoppable. He said that instead of countering and rubbishing his argument, he was being attacked.

He said that he was quoting government data, not something he had invented, and if their data guided him to this particular conclusion, then why should he be faulted? No wonder his words became viral. Former chief economic adviser and eminent economist Kaushik Basu and ex-RBI chief Raghuram Rajan nodded in agreement with him. Obviously, the government issued a clarifica tion, and several other economists jumped into the debate and tried to prove Garg wrong.Debates like this should be welcomed, as they are about real issues.

In a country of 140 crore people, the question should be asked whether the economy’s health is good. Because a good economy means the life standard of the common people is getting better. If the economy is growing at a rate of 7.8%, then everyone needs to feel happy. It gives hope to the poor and middle class that after finishing their studies, their children will get employment, their talent will be recognised and they will be suitably placed in the job market. And if the economy is not growing, then the common people should be worried about their future.

Either way, this provides an opportunity to critically evaluate the performance of the government they voted for in the hope that their lives will be better. The GDP debate helped people form opinions about the regime’s functioning. Debates over communal and religious issues and mobilisation along caste lines have gone too far. Politicians deliberately lay a trap around such emotional issues, as it distracts people from issues that affect their lives. Thanks to Cockroaches, the debate seems to be shift ing from emotional to rational. The debate around the GDP is an extension of that change.