According to the revised estimates of annual national income and quarterly estimates of GDP released by Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) on Friday, the deceleration in the GDP has been mainly on account of poor showing by the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector. The growth rate of this sector during 1999-2000 was 1.3 per cent as compared to 7.2 per cent in the previous fiscal.

The CSO has revised the GDP growth rate for 1999-2000 to 6.4 per cent from 5.9 per cent estimated at the time of release of advance estimates mainly because of the robust performance of the manufacturing sector towards the close of the fiscal. Also the agriculture sector did not perform as badly as anticipated in the advance estimates. In the advance estimates, the CSO expected the agriculture sector to grow only by 0.8 per cent.

The revised growth rate in the manufacturing sector stood at 8.5 per cent during 1999-2000 compared to 7 per cent estimated earlier. In 1998-99, the manufacturing sector had posted a growth rate of 3.6 per cent.

Other sectors which contributed to the revised GDP growth rate included trade, hotels, transport and communication growing at 6.7 per cent compared to 5.9 per cent estimated earlier, construction at 9.1 per cent as against earlier estimates of 9 per cent.

However, growth rates in the sectors like electricity, gas and water supply and mining and quarrying were revised downward.

Growth rate in the electricity, gas and water supply sector was revised downward to 7.4 per cent from 8 per cent estimated earlier while in mining and quarrying it was revised to 0.3 per cent from 0.4 per cent earlier.

Financing, insurance, real estate and business services grew at 10.6 per cent (revised from 10.5 per cent estimated earlier) as against 6.1 per cent in the previous year, CSO release said.

The community, social and personal services posted a lower growth rate of 10 per cent (revised from 9.8 per cent) in 1999-2000 compared to 10.9 per cent growth achieved in the previous year.