Economic Growth

Reality check: From UP to TN, 5 states promise to chip in combined $5 trn

Rupee depreciation and slow growth weigh on states' ambitious economic goals

The capex fault line running via Indian states: Odisha leads, Punjab lags

While Odisha commits 6.5% of its economic output to infrastructure, Punjab and Kerala are trapped by welfare and interest bills

Middle class growth engine of India, 500 cities to be economic hubs: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday described the middle class as the growth engine of India and said nearly 500 cities are poised to emerge as the country's next centres of economic activity. Participating in a panel discussion on 'How to promote the rise of a new middle class' at the Rencontres Economiques d'Aix-en-Provence, a major economic forum of France, Sitharaman said 31 per cent of India's population is middle class as of today. Since India opened its economy, the middle class is growing at an annual rate of 6.3 per cent, she noted. "We think 93 per cent of all spending in India will be because of the middle class or the slightly affluent consumers...and again, this middle class is not concentrated in our metropolitan cities...India's model has resulted in the development in such a way that the middle class is present not just in big cities but they are on the contrary in these tier two, tier three cities," the finance minister said. The distribution of wealth is

Best of BS Opinion: Weather risks, state finances and Trump's economics

Today's opinions examine monsoon uncertainty, RBI's NBFC framework, worsening state finances, Donald Trump's economic approach and the future of modern feminism

India's vision of Viksit Bharat needs building institutional architecture

India's path to becoming a high-income economy hinges on building strong, accountable institutions that can harness demographic, energy and AI opportunities

Karnataka must move away from subsidies to growth-enabling reforms

The multicultural life of the young in Bengaluru today represents India's greatest cosmopolitan and sophisticated culture, surpassing that seen in even Mumbai in some respects

Best of BS Opinion: Hope is not a strategy, capacity is

From geopolitics and women's empowerment to manufacturing, the rupee and technology, lasting progress depends less on hope and more on building capacity

India Inc's Q4 scorecard: Strong finish to FY26, but can the momentum last? | Indian Economy

India Inc ended FY26 on a strong note. In Q4FY26, listed companies posted 15.1% profit growth and 11.4% revenue growth, while profit margins hit a five-year high of 11.3%.

A growth surprise: Healthy Q4 GDP print lends cushion amid hazy outlook

India's economy grew 7.8% in Q4 FY26, beating forecasts, but risks from the West Asia crisis, higher oil prices and a weak monsoon cloud the outlook

India's flailing, failing cities are the biggest threat to Brand India

A deeper analysis will tell you that most of these disasters took place in what might be described variously as unauthorised, illegal or irregular buildings and areas

India's GDP grows 7.8% in Q4 FY26 despite ongoing West Asia crisis

Full-year GDP growth pegged at 7.7%

India's FY26 GDP data: Resilience amid global turbulence, concerns remain

Strong services and manufacturing growth supported India's FY26 performance, but challenges around employment, inequality and regional disparities continue to weigh

The Big Question Can India Achieve High Prosperity?

Can India become one of the world's most prosperous nations by 2100? In this interview, renowned economist Thomas Piketty discusses the findings of the Global Justice Report

Global North must stop growing for India to catch up in prosperity: Piketty

Thomas Piketty says rich nations must curb growth and cut fossil-fuel use if countries like India are to achieve developed-world living standards by 2100

Best of BS Opinion: RBI faces twin inflation risks as uncertainty swirls

Today's Opinion highlights the RBI's policy choices, soaring IPL franchise valuations, fiscal challenges, climate targets and a timely examination of contemporary China

Datanomics: Can DKS sustain Siddaramaiah-led K'taka growth momentum?

As D.K. Shivakumar takes charge, Karnataka hands over a high-growth economy marked by rising incomes, expanding national share and investment-led fiscal management

Let the past be past in tax policy: The cost of retrospective taxes

The current decision on online gaming-gambling is a case in point. This is not an activity that creates large employment, not does it serve genuine needs of people

RBI to estimate natural real rate of interest, potential GDP growth in FY27

RBI plans to estimate India's natural real interest rate and potential GDP growth in FY27 to strengthen macroeconomic forecasting and policy analysis

Quad's pivot to Indo-Pacific geoeconomics faces a credibility test

Cooperation in areas like Open Radio Access Network (RAN), digital supply chain resilience, artificial intelligence, next-generation agriculture, and food security is also deepening its focus on geoec

Is India's inflation targeting too rigid for this oil-shock climate?

A credible framework requires credible measures of price expectations