'Fragile 5 to 5th largest': Centre blames UPA, hails turnaround

The Manmohan Singh-led United Progressive Alliance (2004-14) took advantages of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government's reforms and benign global conditions to exploit growth for its narrow political ends - a process that culminated in India being clubbed among the "Fragile Five" with huge non-performing assets, high fiscal deficit, double-digit inflation and plagued by corruption scandals, the Narendra Modi government said in a White Paper presented in Parliament on Thursday.

- Rajeev Jayaswal

The document, in equal parts a report card of a decade in power for the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance, and a campaign cry ahead of the summer's general elections, added that the Modi government, in power since 2014, turned around the economy, restored its vitality, and made it the fifth largest in the world.

"The exemplary track record of governance, development and performance, effective delivery, and 'Jan Kalyan' has given the government trust, confidence and blessings of the people to realize, whatever it takes, the goal of 'Viksit Bharat' with good intentions, true dedication and hard work in the coming years and decades," finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while tabling the document.

The opposition Congress said the White Paper is aimed at hiding "the dark truth".

"Laughable that after a decade in power, the BJP comes out with a White Paper on our performance, because they have no real accomplishments to speak of," Congress general secretary in-charge KC Venugopal said in a post on X, nerly Twitter.

The 59-page document is divided in three parts - one, the macroeconomic situation of India under the Congress-led UPA; two, the numerous corruption scandals that marked the decade (2004-14); and three, how the NDA turned the economy around, rebuilt India's image, and rekindled people's hopes and aspirations for a better future.

"They inherited a healthy economy and bequeathed an enfeebled one to us. We have restored its vitality," the document said.