NEW DELHI: India’s economy appears to have slowed down slightly in 2018-19, a finance ministry report has said, while listing some challenges that need to be addressed to get the momentum going.The latest comments about growth come in the midst of general elections and are expected to trigger a debate about the health of the economy under Prime Minister Narendra Modi ’s watch. The NDA government has showcased high economic growth to highlight its governance record.The monthly economic report of the department of economic affairs listed the factors behind the slowdown. It is a widely acknowledged fact that growth momentum in the fourth quarter of 2018-19 had slowed down due to a string of factors.“The proximate factors responsible for this slowdown include declining growth of private consumption, tepid increase in fixed investment, and muted exports. On the supply side, the challenge is to reverse the slowdown in growth of agriculture sector and sustain the growth in industry,” said the report.The report also comes against the backdrop of data pointing to slowdown in some sectors such as automobiles and overall manufacturing. GDP growth in the October-December quarter of 2018-19 slowed to 6.6%, while the Central Statistics Office (CSO) has estimated growth for 2018-19 at 7%, marginally down from the previous estimate of 7.2%.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its monetary policy statement said that more recent high frequency indicators point to manufacturing growth slowing down while investment demand remaining muted. The central bank has cut rates twice to support growth in the face of slowing inflation.However, India remains the fastest growing major economy in the world and most multilateral agencies see growth picking up in the months ahead on the back of reform measures undertaken by the government. The new government which assumes office later this month is also expected to unveil steps to boost growth.The finance ministry report said that on the external front, current account deficit, which is an indicator of the country’s ability to meet its overseas obligations, as ratio to GDP is set to fall in the fourth quarter of 2018-19, which will limit the leakage of growth impulse from the economy.