Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday stuck to his conservative estimate of economic growth at 8.5 per cent this financial year and said the economy will be on a high expansion path of 9 per cent in 2011-12.
"The latest figure released by the Central Statistics Office and the latest industrial production figures clearly demonstrate it would not be difficult to achieve 9 per cent growth, as projected in the Budget, from the 2011-12. Surely this year, our growth would be not less than 8.5 per cent," Mukherjee said here.
The Indian economy grew 8.8 per cent in the first quarter of this financial year, the fastest in about three years.
The Finance Minister added that people think the 8.5 per cent estimate is conservative, given that India's economy achieved 8.8 per cent in the first quarter.
"Indian economy is back on the path of growth," he added.
Industrial growth accelerated to 13.8 per cent in July, after dipping to just a little over 5 per cent in the previous month.
Special 
