Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal Defends India's 7.8% GDP Growth Amid Criticism

Synopsis

In response to challenges regarding India’s 7.8 percent GDP growth, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal passionately argued against the claims made by opposition figures and a past finance secretary. He underscored India's stability in the face of global economic turmoil, pointing to high job prospects within the textile sector. Goyal condemned the efforts of critics aiming to mislead the public about the nation’s economic health.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday hit back at opposition leaders and former finance secretary Subhash Garg over criticism of India's 7.8% GDP growth in the first quarter of fiscal 2026-27, saying critics were comparing data from different GDP series and attempting to misguide the public.

India's economy expanded 7.8% in real terms in the April-June quarter, according to the revised GDP series.

Goyal said the growth figure reflected India's position as the fastest-growing major economy despite global economic turmoil.

Also Read: Goyal calls for resilient supply chains, while Gor stresses fair and reciprocal India-US trade

"The naysayers can say what they want, but 7.8 per cent growth is a reality. When I see on television some of the opposition leaders, even possibly you can throw in along with them a former finance secretary or a former Reserve Bank governor, both of whom could not complete their time in India or in the government and for the right reasons.

Live Events

"They don't even know how to compare apples with apples. They are trying to misguide the people of India, comparing a growth rate at an old series with a new series, where the base year itself has changed," Goyal told reporters here.

The minister also hit out at critics who have questioned whether the strong GDP growth is translating into employment opportunities.

He said demand for workers remained strong, particularly in the textile sector, and cited requests from businesses in Tiruppur seeking additional workers.

"Send me 100,000 people in Tiruppur, we will fill and provide them a job," he said.

Goyal said critics were unable to accept the pace of India's economic growth and took a swipe at those questioning the data.

He said that the naysayers somehow are not able to digest that they themselves are the "only jobless people left".

Also Read: India is world’s best location to set up data centres, $200 billion opportunity: Piyush Goyal

"And the only possible job left is to get on to a television panel trying to concoct or manufacturing an argument," he added.

Garg questions GDP calculation

Garg has questioned the growth figures, saying GDP growth would have been around 2.6% in current prices if last year's GDP had not been revised down from roughly Rs 86 lakh crore to Rs 80 lakh crore.

He also argued that the underlying economic activity cannot be concealed because the system for recording monthly and quarterly developments has been in place for years.

Responding to such criticism, Goyal said politicians and government officials do not determine the GDP figures.

"We politicians, ministers and MPs do not manufacture these figures. When you (referring to Opposition leaders) come forward with such a negative mindset, you are, in a way, belittling yourself," Goyal said.