Did India's GDP Really Grow By Just 2.6% In June Quarter? Govt Rejects Claim Of Former Finance Secretary

The government has rejected former finance secretary Subhash Chandra Garg’s claim that India’s GDP growth in the June quarter was only 2.6%, saying the calculation was based on an incorrect comparison between two different GDP data series.

According to a report by Moneycontrol, government sources said Garg arrived at the 2.6% figure by comparing nominal GDP of ₹88.27 lakh crore for the first quarter under the new 2022–23 base-year series with ₹86.05 lakh crore from the old 2011–12 base-year series.

Officials argued that combining figures from separate statistical frameworks does not provide a meaningful measure of economic growth.

Government defends revised GDP calculation

A government source said using a new-series GDP figure as the numerator and an old-series figure as the denominator creates an incompatible comparison. The source described the calculation as “statistically meaningless” and said the approach does not reflect the actual growth rate of the economy.

The response came after the Congress party cited Garg’s comments on social media and alleged that the government had manipulated GDP figures to present a stronger growth picture. The party claimed that the revised data had lowered previous-year GDP estimates, thereby making the latest growth numbers appear higher.

Garg had argued that if earlier GDP figures were not revised, India’s real growth rate would have been significantly lower than the reported 7.8%.

However, government officials said GDP comparisons must be made using figures prepared under the same methodology, data sources and statistical framework.

New GDP series shows 7.8% real growth

According to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, the revised GDP series introduced changes in base-year calculations, sectoral weights, estimation methods, price adjustments and data sources. Officials said these changes apply to the entire historical GDP series and cannot be selectively ignored.

Under the new 2022–23 base-year series, nominal GDP increased from ₹80 lakh crore to ₹88.27 lakh crore in the June quarter, representing 10.3% growth. Real GDP rose from ₹75.46 lakh crore to ₹81.36 lakh crore, reflecting growth of 7.8%.

Officials said the ₹86.05 lakh crore GDP figure cited by Garg was calculated under the previous 2011–12 series and was published in August 2025. Since the base-year revision altered the methodology and coverage of the GDP estimates, they argued that the two figures cannot be directly compared.

The government maintained that evaluating economic growth requires consistency in statistical methods and that the 7.8% real GDP growth figure is based on the updated series approved by the statistics ministry.