Why No Economic Survey To Be Presented Ahead Of Interim Budget 2024

Economic Survey, an annual document released by the Finance Ministry, provides a detailed account of the state of the country's economy through various key indicators. It gives information regarding the country's overall economic scenario in the last financial year and lays the roadmap for the year ahead.

The document is prepared by the Economic Division of the Department of Economic Affairs under the guidance of the Chief Economic Advisor (CEA). The Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) presents it in the parliament on the eve of the Budget presentation every year.

However, Economic Survey will not be presented this year by the central government since Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Interim Budget on Thursday. This is because the 2024 Lok Sabha elections are due in the next few months.

The Interim Budget is expected to be a vote-on-account this year, giving Centre the authority to spend certain sums of money till the time a new government takes charge after the 2024 general elections. The next government is expected to present a full-fledged Budget for FY 2024-25 in July.

Instead of the Economic Survey, the Ministry of Finance has come up with a report titled "The Indian Economy: A Review."

"This is not the Economic Survey of India prepared by the Department of Economic Affairs. That will come before the full budget after the general elections," it states.

The report, having two chapters, takes stock of the state of the Indian economy and its journey in the last 10 years and gives a brief sketch of the outlook for the economy in the next few years.

What the report says

"The Indian Economy: A Review", which was released Monday, states that the country is expected to become the third-largest economy in the world, with a GDP of $5 trillion, in the next three years. India can aspire to become a $7 trillion economy by 2030 on the back of continued reforms, it added.

India was the 10th largest economy in the world a decade ago with a GDP of $1.9 trillion at current market prices. Currently, it is the fifth largest economy globally. “Today, it is the 5th largest with a GDP of USD 3.7 trillion (est. FY24), despite the pandemic and despite inheriting an economy with macro imbalances and a broken financial sector," the report added.

"This ten-year journey is marked by several reforms, both substantive and incremental, which have significantly contributed to the country's economic progress. These reforms have also delivered an economic resilience that the country will need to deal with unanticipated global shocks in the future," it noted,