Economy feeling the heat, but will bounce back, says Maha CM

The country's economy is passing through a slowdown, but it will bounce back within three to six months due to various decisions taken by the Union government, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Friday.

He was interacting with some 10,000 students from 140 schools and colleges in Mumbai, an event organised by a private organisation here.

"There is a global slowdown. In the last five years, we were the fastest-growing economy in the world. For four years, we were able to insulate ourselves. But this year we are feeling the heat," he said.

"GST (Goods and Services Tax) has made evasion of tax impossible. We are also in the process of cleaning up the banking system. The Centre has taken several initiatives to put the economy back on track and the result would be seen in the next couple of months," Fadnavis said.

"We will regain our position (as fastest growing economy) in the next three to six months," he claimed.

On a question about the contentious National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise in Assam, Fadnavis said it was a registry of Indians, and would protect the country from infiltrators.

"Anybody can come in through official channels. But those coming in illegally have grabbed opportunities of Indians. They are also involved in anti-social, anti-national activities," he said.

On the education sector in the state, he said Maharashtra's rank had risen from 18 in 2014 to 3 now.

"We made our schools digital and imparted training to teachers due to which reverse migration from private (schools) to government schools has happened," Fadnavis claimed.