The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has placed India in the second-lowest performance tier, giving the country a ‘C’ grade in its latest annual review of national economic data.

 

The IMF said India’s 2011-12 economic dataset is old and unreliable, and noted that the country’s national accounts contain serious gaps.

 

The report stated that a ‘C’ grade shows “data weaknesses that hinder effective economic monitoring”.

 

According to the global lender, flaws in India’s economic data continue to obstruct proper surveillance.

 

The Fund pointed out that India’s income-based method for calculating GDP has repeatedly faced criticism from economists.

 

The IMF added that these weaknesses have not improved.

 

It may be noted that this was the second consecutive year in a row when India’s national accounts received a ‘C’ grade, as the shortcomings in its statistical system remain in place.