India on track to surpass $4 trn GDP in FY26: CEA

Says need to engage with MSMEs to instil a culture of innovation

- UDISHA SRIVASTAV & RUCHIKA CHITRAVANSHI

India is on track to exceed the $4 trillion milestone in 2025-26 (FY26), surpassing the $3.9 trillion gross domestic product (GDP) mark recorded at the end of March 2025, Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) V Anantha Nageswaran said on Tuesday.

Delivering a keynote address at the IVCA GreenReturns Summit 2025, Nageswaran said: “The economy is already sort of crossing the $4 trillion mark in the course of the current financial year. We were at $3.9 trillion at the end of March 2025, and geopolitics is in a huge state of flux. There is a lot of discontinuity, and economic growth is a very vital prerequisite not only for delivering prosperity but also for maintaining our standing and leverage in the global scheme of things.”

The CEA said economic growth is a necessary condition for achieving environmental and ecological sustainability. “If we have to create 8 million jobs a year, at least for the next 10-15 years, economic growth is a necessary condition. As a country, if we have to rise from $3.9 trillion to meet milestones along the way, our energy requirements are bound to rise,” he added.