New Delhi: NITI Aayog Chief Executive Officer (CEO) B.V.R. Subrahmanyam stated that India has overtaken Japan to become the world’s fourth-largest economy, citing data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Speaking at a press conference during the 10th NITI Aayog Governing Council Meeting on ‘Viksit Rajya for Viksit Bharat 2047’, he announced that India’s economy has reached the USD 4 trillion mark. 

“We are the fourth-largest economy as I speak. This is IMF data, not mine. India today is larger than Japan. Only the United States, China, and Germany are ahead of us. If we continue with the current plans and strategies, we are likely to become the third-largest economy in another 2 to 3 years,” he said.

According to the IMF’s April edition of the World Economic Outlook report, India’s nominal GDP for fiscal year 2026 is projected to reach around USD 4,187.017 billion, slightly ahead of Japan’s estimated GDP of USD 4,186.431 billion. Until 2024, India was ranked as the world’s fifth-largest economy. 

The IMF projects that India will remain the fastest-growing major economy over the next two years, with GDP growth expected at 6.2 percent in 2025 and 6.3 percent in 2026, outpacing global and regional peers. This reinforces India’s emerging dominance in the global economic landscape, especially as global growth is projected to remain subdued at 2.8 percent in 2025 and 3.0 percent in 2026.

Subrahmanyam emphasized that India is at a turning point and in a take-off stage where it has the potential to grow rapidly. 

He also shared insights into the discussions held during the Governing Council Meeting, where the Centre and States discussed strategies across key sectors including manufacturing, services, rural and non-farm areas, urban development, the informal sector, the green economy, and the circular economy. “We had sub-themes around all these areas, which formed the broad agenda of the meeting,” he added.