Gross Value Added during April to June rose 18.8%: National Statistical Office (NSO)
India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 20.1% in the first quarter of 2021-22, compared to the 24.4% contraction recorded in the same quarter a year ago, but economic activity remained well-below pre-pandemic levels thanks to the second wave of COVID-19.

Gross Value Added (GVA) in the economy during the April to June period rose 18.8%, as per the National Statistical Office (NSO), from a 22.2% dip in the first quarter of 2020-21. GVA from agriculture, forestry and fishing, the only sector to grow amid last year’s national lockdown, picked up pace to grow 4.5% in Q1 this year from 3.5% in Q1 2020-21.

Overall GVA in Q1 was still 7.8% lower than the first quarter of 2019-20, at ?30,47,516 crore, while GDP remained 9.2% lower, indicating that the economy still has some way to go before it returns to activity levels prevalent prior to the pandemic.

Electricity, Gas, Water Supply & Other Utility Services, whose GVA grew 14.3% in Q1 of 2021-22, compared to a 9.9% fall last year, was the only sector along with Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing, to recover beyond the pre-pandemic levels of 2019-20.

The government said the NSO numbers ‘reaffirm’ its prediction of an ‘imminent V-shaped recovery’ made this time last year, and said the 20.1% rise in GDP ‘despite the intense second wave in the months of April-May’ highlights the continued economic recovery.