New Delhi, Aug 31 (IANS): The Central Statistics Office (CSO) will release the national income numbers for the first quarter of this fiscal later on Wednesday amid hope that the economy has picked up further for a GDP growth of beyond 7.6 per cent achieved in 2015-16.

The government, in fact, expects the GDP growth to top 8 per cent this fiscal, mainly on the back of a normal monsoon season. The growth rate of the previous fiscal had already made India the fastest expanding economy globally, overtaking China.

"A number of structural reforms have been undertaken by the government over the last two years," Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das said, ahead of the data release. "The impact of all this is beginning to be felt now. We are hoping to better our growth from last year -- closer to 8 per cent."

Ficci, in a report released on Tuesday evening, said the latest Economic Outlook Survey put the GDP growth forecast at 7.8 per cent for 2016-7. This, it said, will be fired largely by a pick-up in rural demand, as also a better performance by the industrial sector.