Why in news? Economic Survey tabled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament

Highlights

• The Survey projected India’s GDP would grow 6.5% in 2023-24, supported by solid domestic demand and a pickup in capital investment
• RBI projects headline inflation at 6.8% in financial year 2023 that is outside of its target
• India’s economic growth in FY23 has been principally led by private consumption and capital formation and they have helped generate employment as seen in the declining urban unemployment rate
• India is the third-largest economy in the world in PPP terms and the fifth-largest in market exchange rates.
• As of end November 2022 , India is sixth largest foreign exchange reserve holder in the world
• Gross NPA ratio at a seven year low at 5%
• There is 4 fold increase in FDI in Pharmacy
• India is largest recipient of remittance in the world receiving 100 billion US dollar. Remittances are the second largest major source of external finance after service

Social Sector

• Out-of-pocket expenditure has dropped as the government’s share of spending on health went up significantly after 2013-14
• The budgetary allocation for education as a percentage of total expenditure has dropped over the past seven years, from 10.4% to 9.5%

Service Sector

• India’s Fintech rate adoption rate of 87% as against the world average 64%
• Identifed the shipbuilding industry as a strategically important industry for its role in energy security, national defence, and the development of the heavy engineering industry,
• Service sector grew at 8.4% in financial year 2022
• India ranked 10^th out of the top 46 countries in the world in the medical tourism Index financial year 2021

What is the Economic Survey?

• As the name suggests, the Economic Survey is a detailed report of the state of the national economy in the financial year that is coming to a close.
• It is prepared by the Economic Division of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) under the guidance of the CEA. Once prepared, the Survey is approved by the Finance Minister.
• The first Economic Survey was presented for 1950-51 and until 1964, it was presented along with the Budget.

What is the Economic Survey’s significance?

• Even though it comes just a day before the Budget, the assessment and recommendations carried in the survey are not binding on the Budget.
• Still, the survey remains the most authoritative and comprehensive analysis of the economy that is conducted from within the Union government.
• As such, its observations and details provide an official framework for analysing the Indian economy.