Why India missed the $5 trillion GDP target

In nominal terms, which includes inflation, India’s GDP almost doubled from Rs 189 lakh crore in 2018-19 to Rs 346 lakh crore in 2025-26. That’s an annual growth of about 9% in rupee terms. Yet, India still fell short of the $5 trillion-economy target set by BJP in its 2019 poll manifesto. A major reason was the exchange rate. Over this period, the rupee weakened substantially against the dollar, reducing the size of India’s economy when measured in US dollars.
TOI explains what happened, why the rupee-dollar gap mattered, and when India could cross the $5-trillion mark.