The economy rebounded.
Exports and imports declined.
Foreign-exchange reserves grew.
Coal production, electricity generation and petroleum consumption rose.
Non-performing assets (NPAs) in banking soared.
There are great similarities between Prime Minister Narendra Modi&rsquo;s first year in office&mdash;which he completes on May 26&mdash;and the corresponding first year of former PM Manmohan Singh&rsquo;s last term.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2014/jul/Modi-Manmohan-o.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="433" /> Manmohan Singh and Narendra Modi. File pic
In seven of 12 indicators evaluated by IndiaSpend, the data reveal a similar trend&mdash;a reasonable economic performance after an economic downturn, as the chart below reveals:
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2015/may/desktop1.jpg" alt="" /> Source (1- 2009-10, 2- 2014-15) : GDP 1, 2; Agriculture 1, 2; Industrial Production 1, 2; Coal Production 1, 2; Foreign Exchange Reserves 1, 2; Exports 1, 2; Imports 1, 2; Non Performing Assets 1, 2; Petroleum 1, 2; Electricity 1, 2; Nuclear 1, 2; Renewable Energy 1, 2. *NPAs for 2014-15 calculated up to December 2014.
The large variations in the first-year period centre on:
Industrial production: In Modi&rsquo;s first year, the index of industrial production (IIP) for eight core sectors (coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity) grew 5% during 2014-15, against 4.2% the previous year. In Singh&rsquo;s first year, the IIP for six core industries (crude oil, refinery products, coal, electricity, cement and finished carbon steel) grew 10.4%, compared to 2.8% in the previous year 2008-09.
Exports and imports: In terms of dollars, exports and imports declined 2% and 0.5%, respectively, in 2014-15 from 2013-14. In Singh&rsquo;s first year (of his second term) exports and imports declined far more sharply, 4% and 5%, respectively, in 2009-10 compared to 2008-09.
Nuclear energy: With the commissioning of the Kudankulam Unit-1 of 1000 mw in Tamil Nadu during December 2014, India&rsquo;s total installed nuclear capacity reached 5,780 mw in 2014-15 from 4,780 MW in 2013-14, an increase of 21%. In 2009-10, it was up 10.6% from the previous year.
Direct comparisons are difficult, considering that Singh was in his second term in office. Modi carries Singh&rsquo;s economic legacy, which worsened considerably by the end of the term, attributed by observers to a global downturn and misgovernance.
But these indicators offer a broad statistical evaluation of the first years of Modi and Singh (during UPA2, as the second term of the United Progressive Alliance was called).
A journey through the numbers
Economic Growth: Overall gross domestic product (GDP) growth in 2009-10, at constant prices, was reported to be 8.9%. After a change in calculation and base year, GDP growth is estimated to be 7.4% for 2014-15.
Agriculture: Agriculture, which employs about 600 million Indians, registered a growth of 1.1% in 2014-15 compared to 0.8% during 2009-10. The numbers indicate a long-standing&mdash;and worsening&mdash;crisis.
Foreign-exchange reserves: Forex reserves increased 12% from US$ 341 billion at the end of 2014-15 as compared to US$ 304 billion at the end of 2013-14. For Singh in UPA2, they increased 5.4% from US $ 241.7 billion at the end of 2008-09 to US $ 254.9 billion in 2009-10.
Coal: Coal from India&rsquo;s mines increased 8.2% in 2014-15, later falling into a controversy over botched allotments, one of the reasons for the decline in UPA2&rsquo;s image. In 2009-10, production increased 8.1%. Performance of the coal sector is expected to improve with the re-allotment of 67 coal blocks through an auction, although Modi&rsquo;s figure of Rs 2-lakh crore ($31.25 billion) windfall is now contested.
Petroleum: In 2014-15, consumption of petroleum products (diesel, petrol, LPG etc.) increased 3.1%, compared to 3.2% during 2009-10. India&rsquo;s demand for petroleum products is expected to grow 3.3% next financial year, according to the oil ministry.
(<a href="http://www.indiaspend.com/" target="_blank">An Indiaspend.org story</a>)
Electricity: A good indicator of an economy&rsquo;s health, installed electricity capacity in 2014-15, rose 10% against 2013-14. In 2009-10, it increased 7.7% over the previous year.
Renewable energy: With pressure on India to cut carbon emissions and a small base, renewable energy&mdash;it is responsible for 12% of India&rsquo;s total power installed&mdash;growth rates were high during both terms. The total installed capacity of renewable energy reported a 7.56% growth in 2014-15 and a growth of 17.20% in 2009-10.
Non-performing assets: NPAs of public sector banks increased 17% from Rs 2.27 lakh crore in March 2014 to Rs 2.73 lakh crore in December 2014, a carry-over from UPA2. Public sector bank NPAs had increased 23% in 2009-10 over the previous year. NPA growth rates of this magnitude can destabilise the banking system.
(Indiaspend.org is a data-driven, public-interest journalism non-profit)

There are great similarities between Prime Minister Narendra Modi&rsquo;s first year in office&mdash;which he completes on May 26&mdash;and the corresponding first year of former PM Manmohan Singh&rsquo;s last term

Modi & Manmohan: 1 Year, Spot The Differences

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Modi & Manmohan: 1 Year, Spot The Differences

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