India seen boosting budget spending on infrastructure
The Hindu
‘Fiscal constraints limit room for concessions to pandemic-hit households’
India plans to raise spending on infrastructure in its annual budget next week to set the economy on a firmer footing, but fiscal constraints leave little chance of concessions for households hurting from the pandemic, officials said.
Asia’s third-largest economy is estimated to expand 9.2% in the fiscal year that ends in March, following a contraction of 7.3% in the previous fiscal year.
Yet private consumption, which makes up almost 55% of GDP, is below pre-pandemic levels amid rising household debt, while retail prices have swelled almost a tenth since the COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020.

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