India's GDP for the second quarter ended September, estimated at Rs 29.63 lakh crore, recorded a growth of 7.3 per cent compared to the 7.1 per cent in the first quarter, but was slower than the 7.6 per cent increase posted in corresponding quarter of the last fiscal, data released on Wednesday showed.

In terms of gross value added (GVA) -- considered a better measure of economic performance, as it excludes product taxes and subsidies -- of 27.33 lakh crore for the quarter, the growth at 7.1 per cent was slower compared to 7.3 per cent in the previous year, mainly due to a contraction in mining and deceleration in manufacturing.

Within the GVA, the manufacturing activity slowed in the September quarter at 7.1 per cent, against 9.2 per cent in the same quarter of the previous year. Government services, including defence, logged a robust growth of 12.5 per cent, against 6.9 per cent in the previous year.

The primary sector, including agriculture and fisheries, saw a growth of 3.3 per cent, against 2 per cent, while that for construction also rose to 3.8 per cent from 0.8 per cent.

Mining and quarrying output, which had expanded by 5 percent in the first quarter of the previous fiscal, shrank (-)1.5 per cent.

"Agriculture does beter than last year owing to better rainfall and sowing," Chief Statistician T.C.A Anant told reporters here, while releasing the report.

"Mining and quarrying have done worse than last year..but this comes on the back of a sharp increase in mining and quarrying in 2015," he added.

--IANS

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