‘No one believed it was possible’: Former CEA KV Subramanian on India’s ‘tremendous economic growth’

Former Chief Economic Adviser Prof. Krishnamurthy V Subramanian said that he feels gratified to have predicted India’s economic growth in 2020 but no one at that time believed it was possible. 

“The global media folks will come around & start acknowledging the tremendous economic growth India is experiencing and will experience in the coming two decades. Feel gratified to have seen this and predicted it in 2020 itself at a time when no one believed it would be possible,” posted Subramanian on X, formerly on Twitter, quoting a report that stated that no nation is buying more planes than India. 

The report by New York Times, referring to IndiGo and Air India’s bulk plane orders, called the spending “unparalleled in aviation”. Moreover, Delhi airport, the Indira Gandhi International Airport, will be ready for 109 million passengers, propelling it to become the second busiest airport after Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in the US.

The report also highlighted India’s heavy reliance on trains. Homegrown Indian airlines clocked an increase of 36 per cent in passengers since 2022. Low-cost carriers are adding new destinations to meet the demand for foreign tourism. 

Air India in February placed an order to buy 250 planes from Airbus and 220 planes from Boeing in a deal worth $70 billion. Air India’s orders include 34 A350-1000, six A350-900, 20 Boeing 787 Dreamliners and 10 Boeing 777X widebody aircraft, as well as 140 Airbus A320neo, 70 Airbus A321neo and 190 Boeing 737MAX narrowbody aircraft. Airbus A350 will lead the deliveries of the new aircraft later this year, with the bulk of the order to arrive from mid-2025 onwards. 

IndiGo, the country’s largest airline by passengers and flights, later in June ordered 500 new Airbus A230s. "This 500 aircraft order is not only IndiGo’s largest order but also the largest-ever single aircraft purchase by any airline with Airbus," said the company in a statement. The engine selection for this order will be done in due course and will be a mix of A320 and A321 aircraft. 

Also read: Air India signs agreements to acquire 470 aircraft from Airbus and Boeing

Also read: IndiGo places record order for 500 Airbus A320 aircraft