New Delhi, Sept. 3 -- Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday hit back at critics questioning India's latest GDP data, asserting that the growth figures are compiled through an independent statistical process and are free of any political interference.

Speaking at a National Workshop on Leveraging Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), organised as part of an outreach programme, Goyal described the first-quarter growth numbers as a landmark achievement. "The results of the first-quarter growth are very, very exciting, holding tremendous promise for the future," he said, pointing to a 7.8 per cent GDP growth rate at constant prices.

According to the data release by the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation on Mo...