PM Modi hails Q1 GDP figures, says Congress left India’s economy on a landmine

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the Congress had left the economy on a “landmine” and the GDP numbers in Q1 of the fiscal year 2018-19 was a medal for the country. Speaking at the launch event of India Post Payments Bank in New Delhi, Modi said, “Just a few days after our government came to power, we realised that the Congress had left the nation’s economy on a landmine.”

Hailing the 8.2 per cent growth rate of the economy in the April-June quarter of 2018-19, the Prime Minister said, “On one hand Indian sportsperson have given the best ever performance at the Asian Games 2018, while on the other hand, our country has got a medal because of the GDP figures that have come out yesterday (Friday).”

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India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) registered a growth rate of 8.2 per cent in the first quarter of the fiscal year 2018-19, beating the estimates of 7.6 per cent by economists. The 8.2 per cent growth rate of the Indian economy was the highest in the last two years.

Earlier in the day, Modi launched India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) – the largest payments bank in the country. With an aim to provide banking services to the people of unbanked rural areas, the IPPB will offer a wide range of banking services such as savings and current accounts, money transfer, direct benefit transfers, bill and utility payments, and enterprise and merchant payments.

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The IPPB will have a robust network with 650 branches and 3250 Access Points across the country. The IPPBs system will be linked with all the 1.55 lakh Post Offices in the country by December 31.