New Delhi, Jan 10, 2025, IANS

New Delhi, Jan 10 (IANS) India’s industrial growth, reflected in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), accelerated to a 6-month high of 5.2 per cent in November, up from 3.5 per cent in October of the current financial year (2024-25), according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics on Friday. The increase also marks a significant rise over the industrial growth of 2.5 per cent recorded a year before in November 2023. The growth rate of the manufacturing sector, which accounts for more than three-fourths of the index of industrial production (IIP), accelerated to 5.8 per cent during November 2024 from 4.1 per cent in October. This augurs well for employment generation as the sector plays a key role in providing quality jobs to the young graduates passing out from the country’s engineering institutes and universities. Within the manufacturing sector, 18 out of 23 industry groups have recorded positive growth in November this year over November 2023. The top three positive contributors for the month of November 2024 are “Manufacture of basic metals” (7.6 per cent), “Manufacture of electrical equipment” (37.2 per cent) and “Manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products” (12.0 per cent), the official statement said. The data also showed that growth in the output of the electricity and mining sectors of the IIP in November was 1.9 per cent and 4.4 per cent, respectively. The performance of the electricity sector during the month improved from 0.9 per cent in October. The figures on use-based classification show that the production of capital goods, which comprise machines used in factories, went up by a robust 9 per cent. This segment reflects the real investment taking place in the economy which has a multiplier effect on the creation of jobs and incomes going ahead. There was also a double-digit surge of 13.1 per cent in the production of consumer durables such as electronic goods, refrigerators, and TVs during November reflecting the higher consumer demand for these items amid rising incomes. The industrial growth rate for the April-November period of the current financial year now works out to 4.1 per cent, according to the official figures.