Sitaram Yechury accuses govt of 'economic mismanagement', 'all-round failure'

New Delhi: Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Wednesday accused the Union government of "economic mismanagement", and said rising inflation, combined with industrial slowdown and job losses, is making lives "miserable".

"Modi govt's economic mismanagement continues to hit hard. Industrial output growth decelerates to 3.8 per cent in January, with manufacturing sector slowing to 3.2 per cent," Yechury said in a post on X.

Modi govt's economic mismanagement continues to hit hard. Industrial output growth decelerates to 3.8% in January, with manufacturing sector slowing to 3.2%. Despite promises of boosting production, sectors like electronics & computers contract by 14%. PLI scheme falls short yet… pic.twitter.com/nu1TgDLFuO

— Sitaram Yechury (@SitaramYechury) March 13, 2024

"Despite promises of boosting production, sectors like electronics and computers contract by 14 per cent. PLI scheme falls short yet again. Modi govt’s all-round failure leads to the destruction of economy," he said.

India's industrial production growth slowed to 3.8 per cent in January 2024, mainly due to poor performance of manufacturing, mining and power sectors, according to official data released on Tuesday.

According to the latest data, the manufacturing sector's output growth decelerated to 3.2 per cent in January against 4.5 per cent a year ago.

In another post, Yechury slammed the government over rising inflation, and said, "Modi govt's incompetence is laid bare yet again as India's vegetable prices surge at a staggering pace of 30.25 per cent in February, making livelihood virtually impossible".

"Combined with industrial slowdown and job losses, rising prices are making lives miserable. Urban or rural, mounting miseries are felt nationwide," he said.

The inflation in the food basket rose marginally to 8.66 per cent in February from 8.3 per cent in the preceding month, according to data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO).

On a month-on-month basis, inflation eased marginally in case of vegetables, fruits, oils and fats, and pulses and products in February. However, the rate of price rise was higher in cereals and products, meat and fish, and milk and products segments.

The food basket has nearly 50 per cent weight in the Consumer Price Index (CPI).