India's growth story intact, corrective measures taken: Prez

Asking industrialists to keep faith in robust fundamentals of Indian economy, President Pranab Mukherjee today expressed confidence that the country would be able to achieve seven to eight per cent growth again in next two to three years.
Speaking at the annual Business Standard awards here, Mukherjee said growth rate of 5.9 per cent and 6.4 per cent have been projected for the years 2013 and 2014 respectively.
He said it is also an acknowledgement of India's ability to whether financial storm that left several economies in shambles.
Underlining that India's growth story is intact, Mukherjee said there was no reason to be pessimistic as corrective measures have been taken.

He said India registered growth of 9.3 per cent in 2010-11 during economic rough weather and 6.7 per cent in 2008-09 when financial crisis created virtual mayhem in the largest economies of the world.
The President said given the statistics there was little room for pessimism and the captains of the industry must keep faith in robustness of the system.

Expressing concerns over not-so-encouraging private investments, Mukherjee said, "tightening of monetary policy between March 2010 and October 2011 was necessary to combat inflation. But this led to an increasing the cost of borrowing, making it difficult for the private sector to raise capital."

The President said several authoritative survey on business regulation and procedure involved in starting business among others have given low rankings to India which may not be accurate reflection of ground realities.
The President highlighted the need for increased emphasis on inclusiveness in the economic growth.
"We cannot ignore 355 million people who live below the poverty line. In reality growth to be sustainable has to be inclusive," he said.
Emphasising on the role of business papers, the President said they have more definite role to play in the economic growth of the country.
"The news that they publish can influence sentiments of the Indian business community. They too have a bearing on the decisions of the foreign investors to invest in India. This is especially important as inflows help in domestic industry to raise capital and ease the country's current account deficit," he said.