CPI(M) Polit Bureau member B.V. Raghavulu on Sunday termed demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax (GST) as surgical strikes on the Indian economy, which is not in the pink of health.
Speaking at the inaugural of the 49th annual general conference of the Insurance Corporation of Employees’ Union of Machilipatnam Division, he said for the last six quarters, the country’s economy was in a shambles as the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was witnessing a steady fall.
“From 9.2% to 5.7% is not an encouraging sign,” he said.
Mr. Raghavulu said several policies pursued by the UPA government and now by the NDA were responsible for the present economic crisis.
He said a 1% fall in the GDP meant a loss of 10 lakh jobs.
“The present economic conditions will have a cascading affect on the entire nation,” he said.
Dig at Amit Shah
Mr. Raghavulu said the tall talk of the BJP leaders that India would supersede China in growth rate proved wrong as Indian GDP was witnessing a steep fall while China’s growth was getting consolidated.
Mr. Raghavulu said BJP chief Amit Shah, in the recent Confederation of Indian Industries meeting, fooled the people of the nation by projecting the present slump as a temporary phenomenon as the research wing of State Bank of India clearly projected that the fall was a permanent one that needed structural changes.
Mr. Raghavulu said the inequality between the haves and the have-nots was phenomenally increasing owing to privatisation policies of the governments.
Rich-poor divide
He further added, “In the last 15 years, the gap between the rich and the poor has increased by 30%. It was around 6% in China . In the US, it is 77%. The top 1% of our country owns 46% of the prosperity.”
He also said the gap between the imports and exports was leading to current account deficit.
“For the past four years, the current account deficit was gradually increasing. If imports are more, we will face a crunch situation as we need to pay the debtors regularly and should ensure foreign exchange reserves. This situation will also create panic among the foreign investors, who would prefer to leave the country,” Mr. Raghavulu said.
Dharna staged
The union members, before the meeting , staged a rally condemning GST in the premium paid by the policy-holders.
