No policy paralysis; economy stable: Chidambaram

Rejecting arguments of "policy paralysis", Finance Minister P Chidambaram today said the economy is more stable than what it was two years ago following several steps taken by the government and that the growth will be higher in the second half of the fiscal.

"Thanks to the numerous measures, I was confident that the decline will be arrested and growth cycles will turn in the second quarter. I believe, I have been vidicated...Second quarter at 4.8% and growth for whole year has been estimated at 4.9%.

"This means that growth in Q3 and Q4 of 2013-14 will be at least 5.2%," he said in the interim budget.

He said the UPA government's record on economic growth front is "unparalleled".

"Madam speaker, I reject the argument of policy paralysis. Just as there are business cycles, there is a cycle around the trend growth rate of an economy.

"I can confidently assert that the economy is more stable today than what it was two years ago," Chidambaram said.

India's economic growth slowed to a decade low of 4.5% in 2012-13 due to global as well as domestic factors, like high interest rate.

The government took several steps, including setting up of Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) under chairmanship of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to fast track big ticket projects.

While industrial growth contracted for three consecutive months through December, good monsoon rains in 2013 were a good news for the agricultural sector, which has about 15% share in the GDP.