India has reached a historic milestone by surpassing Japan to become the fourth-largest economy in the world, with its nominal GDP standing at $4.187 trillion in 2025, confirmed by NITI Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam, referring to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) data. This milestone was declared after the 10th NITI Aayog Governing Council Meeting on May 24, 2025, with the theme of ‘Viksit Rajya for Viksit Bharat 2047.’ Subrahmanyam pointed out that the economy of India, currently placed at $4 trillion, is only behind the United States, China, and Germany. The achievement is evidence of India’s robust economic expansion, characterized by a continued influx of investment, numerous government-supported strategies to industrialize, and strong production lessons from the primary sectors of manufacturing, services, and infrastructure. The International Monetary Fund’s April 2025 World Economic.
Outlook estimated India’s GDP was a fraction ahead of Japan’s GDP of $4.186 trillion, an inflection point after several months of close competition.
In the future, India is set to rise even higher, with estimates suggesting it will surpass Germany to become the third-largest economy by 2028. Subrahmanyam stressed that with present planning and strategies continuing, India’s GDP would reach $5.584 trillion by 2028, ahead of Germany’s estimated $5.251 trillion. IMF projects India’s growth to be 6.2% in 2025 and 6.3% in 2026, the fastest growing among major economies, from a global average of 2.8% and 3%, respectively. The NITI Aayog meeting had talks centred on plans for various sectors, such as rural and urban development, informal work, and green economies, in terms of making India a $5 trillion economy by 2027.
This economic leap illustrates India’s affordably positive socio-political economic circumstance, as Subrahmanyam pointed out. Despite uncertainties introduced by global realities, such as tariff policies from the United States, India retains a reasonably low-cost manufacturing base for global production needs that can continue to be advantageous to India. Union Minister Jitendra Singh praised the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, stating that it would be a “giant leap” toward a developed India by 2047.
