According to sources, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has asked the Finance Ministry to hold consultations with key ministries to prepare a matrix of government revenues and spending as well as measures needed to arrest the decline in GDP growth.
With concerns being raised over the India growth story hitting a roadblock, visible in the recent fall in GDP growth, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is learnt to have sought a clear roadmap to ensure revival of growth.
According to sources, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has asked the Finance Ministry to hold consultations with key ministries to prepare a matrix of government revenues and spending as well as measures needed to arrest the decline in GDP growth.
Sources say that while experts believe that the recent bump in the growth trajectory is just a temporary phase, which will pass once spending on infrastructure picks up, Modi is in favour of an "immediate and positive" response from the government. The government is concerned at the stuttering growth despite a benign macroeconomic environment with easy money flowing in, global growth reviving, government revenues looking solid, deep foreign exchange reserves, reasonable oil prices and a decent monsoon keeping food prices in check.
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley held a brainstorming meeting with senior officials from various ministries on Tuesday to find ways to boost growth and create jobs.The meeting which lasted about two hours was also attended by Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and secretaries of various Finance Ministry departments.
Options of multi-sectoral interventions were also discussed during the meeting, but more discussions will take place before their finalisation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was expected to chair the meeting, but is now likely to meet key ministers, including Jaitley, in the next few days.
Tuesday's meeting also reviewed exports, especially after the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). The Finance Ministry will submit a report to the PMO post the review process, according to sources.
Since 2016, GDP growth has fallen for six consecutive quarters, dipping to three-year low of 5.7 per cent in the April-June quarter with India losing the fastest growing economy tag to China for the second straight quarter.
Both wholesale and retail inflation rose in August. Besides the falling GDP growth rate, exports are facing strong headwinds and industrial growth is the lowest in five years. The current account deficit — the difference between inflow and outflow of foreign exchange — has risen to 2.4 per cent of GDP in April-June.
It is learnt that the government will soon address structural problems facing the economy as well as transient issues with the implementation of GST. It was expected that GST will boost growth by up to 2 percentage points, but technical glitches in the first two months of the implementation have created a scare of revenues falling short of expectations.
A targeted government spending, given the limited fiscal space available, particularly in infrastructure, combined with GST-related problems, and sectors and industries that create jobs were the main points of the meeting.
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 "Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley")
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