Economists and industry experts celebrated India's progress after a Bloomberg report published on Friday, 2 September, determined that India has surpassed the United Kingdom to become the fifth largest economy in the world.
Business tycoon Anand Mahindra hailed the news, and attributed the development to the philosophy of karma.
"The law of Karma works. News that would have filled the hearts of every Indian that fought hard & sacrificed much for freedom. And a silent but strong reply to those who thought India would descend into chaos. A time for silent reflection, gratitude," he tweeted.
Uday Kotak, CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, applauded the "proud moment" but asserted that more work was needed for Indian economy to progress. "Proud moment for India to pip UK, our colonial ruler, as the 5th largest economy: India $3.5trn vs UK $3.2trn. But a reality check of population denominator: India: 1.4 bn vs UK.068 bn. Hence, per capita GDP we at $2,500 vs $47,000. We have miles to go…Let’s be at it!"
"This is our time to shine," stated Ghazal Alagh, Shark Tank India judge and founder of skincare brand MamaEarth.
"India races ahead of Britain to become world’s fifth largest economy and the fastest growing one too," Senior Adviser to Ministry of Information & Broadcasting Kanchan Gupta noted.
'India Moving Up the Power Scale'
Economist Dr Charan Singh observed that Britain's economy is shrinking while India's is booming, and predicted that India will rise further by 2027.
"While the world is on brink of a recession, India is growing by 7 percent...There is inflation of 10 percent in UK, 9 percent in America and 6-7 percent in India which is normal. It's good news for all Indians before the auspicious occasion of Diwali," Dr Singh was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
"India is moving up the power scale and by value of forecast we will become 3rd largest by 2028-30," Dr Arvind Virmani, former chief economic advisor, said.
India pushed the UK to the sixth spot in the last three months of 2021, as the latter grapples with a shrinking economy and a change of leadership following Boris Johnson's resignation.
(With inputs from ANI)
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