Transcript of the remarks by India’s former Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, about economic mismanagement under the Modi government. Sept 1 2019.

The state of the economy today is deeply worrying. The last quarter’s GDP growth rate of 5 percent signals that we are in the midst of a prolonged slowdown. India has the potential to grow at a much faster rate, but all-round mismanagement by the Modi government has resulted in this slowdown.

It is particularly distressing that the manufacturing sector’s growth is tottering at 0.6 percent. This makes it very clear that our economy has not yet recovered from the man-made blunders of demonetisation and a hastily implemented GST. Domestic demand is depressed. And consumption growth is at an 18 month low. Nominal GDP growth is at 15 year low.

There is a gaping hole in tax revenues. Tax buoyancy remains elusive as businessmen, small and big, are hounded, and tax terrorism continues unabated. Investor sentiment are in doldrums. These are not the foundations for economic recovery.

The Modi government’s policies are resulted in massive jobless growth. More than 3.5 lakh Jobs have been lost in the automobile sector alone. There will similarly be large scale job losses in the informal sector, hurting our most vulnerable workers.

Rural India is in terrible shape. Our farmers are not receiving adequate prices and rural incomes have declined. The low inflation rate that the Modi government likes to showcase comes at the cost of our farmers and their income, by inflicting misery on over 50 percent of India’s population.

Institutions are under attack, and their autonomy is being eroded. The resilience of the Reserve Bank will be tested after its record transfer of rupees 1.76 lakh crore to the government, which claims that it does not have a plan on what it will do with this windfall. In addition, the credibility of India’s data has come under question under this government.

Budget announcements and rollbacks have shaken the confidence of international investors. India has not been able to increase the exports to take advantage of opportunities that have arisen in global trade due to geopolitical realignment. Such is the state of economic management under the Modi government.

Our youth, our farmers and our farm workers, entrepreneurs, and the marginalised section deserve better. India cannot afford to continue down this path. Therefore, I urge the Government to put aside vendetta politics and reach out to all sane voices and thinking minds to steer our economy out of this man-made crisis.