The economy has recently shown some worrying signs, even before the conflict in West Asia began. One such indicator was the February 2026 data on the Index of Eight Core Industries. It revealed that overall growth had fallen to a three-month low, dropping to nearly half of January’s rate. This decline cannot be explained by a high base effect, as growth in February 2025 was only 3.4%. Sector-wise data further highlight concerns. The domestic crude oil industry has been shrinking for six consecutive months and has contracted in most of the last two years. Similarly, the natural gas sector has been declining for a prolonged period. India is heavily dependent on energy imports, especially from regions affected by geopolitical tensions. Much of the fall in domestic production was due to cheaper imports. However, given rising tensions, it would have been wiser to increase domestic oil and gas production earlier to build reserves and reduce dependence. While reducing import reliance permanently takes time, a temporary push in domestic production could have eased the present supply challenges. Lack of timely planning has worsened the situation. Additionally, schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana should have encouraged stronger policies to secure LPG supplies and reserves. The weak performance of core sectors adds to concerns raised by new GDP data, which suggest that the economy is smaller than previously estimated. Contributions from key drivers like consumption, investment, and trade have declined, while unsold stock levels have increased, indicating weak demand. With high oil prices, restricted fuel supply, and global uncertainty, growth projections are being reduced to around 6.5%. This situation calls for a more realistic evaluation of India’s economic strength and resilience.