India's growth down due to global factors, says T C A Raghavan

SINGAPORE: India's growth has come down due to a host of global factors but that need not be a cause of undue pessimism about its medium-term prospects, High Commissioner to Singapore T C A Raghavan said here today.

The Indian growth story has been powered by a cluster of economic policies and changes in which both public and private investment have been equal partners, he said at the Singapore Press Club lunch talk.

"The principle of inclusive growth has been at its core. With some fragility in the global economy, eroding prospects in our major economic and trading partners, an impact on our own growth rates and economic indicators is inevitable," he said as part of the club's Eminent speaker series.

"If our growth has come down it remains high relative to that elsewhere. Our macroeconomic strengths are a large economy and hinterland, a young population and a host of attributes variously called silent innovation, entrepreneurship etc," he said.

Short-term problems present a challenge, but need not be a cause of undue pessimism about our medium term prospects, said Raghavan.

"High expectations are much healthier than low expectations. Understanding this is the key to understanding the strength of India's growth story," he stressed.