The figure, released on the same day as India's budget which made boosting farm output a key goal in the next fiscal year, was below a consensus forecast of 9.3 percent and compared with 9.3 percent in the same period a year earlier.

"There is a downside risk to the government's advance estimate of full-year GDP growth of 9.2 percent year-on-year growth for 2006-07," said Rajeev Malik, economist at JP Morgan in Singapore.

Growth was "likely to moderate owing to the impact of tighter monetary policy and moderation in exports, but continued higher spending on capital expenditure and infrastructure will be significant offsetting forces," Malik said.

The central Reserve Bank of India has been raising interest rates since late 2004 in a bid to curb inflation which hit a more than two year high of 6.73 percent earlier in February.

The rate is well above the central bank's tolerance level of 5.0 to 5.5 percent and the Reserve Bank has said it will not hesitate to tighten further.