Ahmedabad: Asserting that the Indian economy is growing at a "healthy rate", Union Finance Minister Jaswant Singh today (Apr 12, 2004) said the 10.4 per cent growth achieved by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Government in the fourth quarter is the "highest quantitative rate" ever by an Indian Government.

"The growth rate has grown considerably and it is as per the parameters that the (Finance) Ministry had set for the year," Singh said during the election tour of Gujarat.

"We are now awaiting the RBIs (Reserve Bank of India) monetary policy. But regarding the appreciation of the Rupee, I can say that it should not be compared with the Dollar as the US currency has declined much in the past months. Appreciation is there and it is evident in the exports," Singh said.

When asked about a recent World Bank report that claimed that 40 per cent of farmers in India are below poverty line (BPL) and 30 per cent of the workers get daily wages less than one Dollar, Singh said, "Statistics compiled by the Government indicates the BPL ratio to be within 22-24 per cent."

"Moreover, the World Bank itself is no benchmark when it comes to such assessments. It (World Bank) itself is positioned at 24 as far as its assets are concerned and it may not be entirely correct," he said.

Replying to a question if Indian troops would be sent to Iraq, Singh, who had been the External Affairs Minister, said, "My personal assessment is that Indian troops would not be sent to Iraq clearly as the situation right now does not warrant such a move."