BENGALURU: The Opposition Congress in thCongress e state has slammed the Economic Survey 2022, released by the Centre on Monday. Congress legislature party leader Siddaramaiah expressed disappointment over the survey’s projections, but chose not to go into the finer aspects.
Former Congress MP, Professor Rajeev Gowda, who was previously a faculty member at the Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore, told TNIE, “The Economic Survey is a very selective and deceptive assessment. It ignores the worsening inequalities and harsher conditions faced by the poor and also the devastating impact of the pandemic on women, children and rural India.’’
“It does not look at two-wheeler sales, which is an indicator of the lower middle class and rural Indian consumption. It celebrates tax revenues which have been squeezed by way of excessive fuel tax which hurt the poor more than anyone else,’’ Prof Gowda added.
AICC spokesman Brijesh Kalappa said, “The impetus of the Modi government in a post-Covid era ought to have been on softening the blow dealt by the pandemic on sectors like tourism, hospitality and allied activities. The Economic Survey has virtually ignored all of these sectors. More ought to have been done for job growth and sectoral allocation for MSMEs.
However, both these areas have been left untouched. There are gaping holes in the economy and the Economic Survey is an attempt to airbrush them into invisibility.’’ Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday tabled the Economic Survey 2022 in the Lok Sabha on the first day of the Budget session.