Gujarat ranks ninth in economic growth rate, is behind UP, West Bengal in contribution to national GDP

Gross domestic product in billion US dollars

A top financial consulting firm, Unidow Finances Intelligence Services, has, in its recent analysis, ranked Gujarat No 9th in the percentage of growth in gross state domestic (GSDP). While Gujarat’s growth at current prices in 2012 – for which he made public data – was 15.33 per cent, the states which performed better that Gujarat were Maharashtra (16.86 per cent), Rajasthan (21.91 per cent), Kerala (16.97 per cent), Haryana (16.06 per cent), Madhya Pradesh (19.02 per cent), Bihar (24.40 per cent), Chhattisagarh (18.26 per cent), and Jammu & Kashmir (15.80 per cent).
The top consultants has also found that Maharashtra contributes most in the gross domestic product (GDP) of India, with 14.95 per cent, followed by Uttar Pradesh (8.23 per cent), Andhra Pradesh (8.09 per cent), Tamil Nadu (7.65 per cent), West Bengal (6.48 per cent) and Gujarat (6.14 per cent). It is not known why the consultants have not made public figures post-2012, but according to official sources, one of the major reasons could be that Gujarat and a few other states have still not handed over GSDP figures to India’s Planning Commission.
The only official information about Gujarat’s state domestic product for 2012-13 is “Statements under the Gujarat Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2005”. Released about a year ago, it finds that the GSDP rate for 2012-13 was 13.98 per cent, at current prices, which is lower than the previous year, for which Unidow – which is based in Noida, which is part of the Delhi National Capital Region – has provided figures. However, being advanced estimates, these cannot be taken as final.
More, what the budget book or the consultants do not say is, the current price rate of growth of gross state domestic product (GSDP) does not take into the inflationary factor. According a senior economist's calculation, at constant prices, Gujarat’s growth rate in 2012-13 would be around 5.68 per cent, if what is called “deflator” is taken into account. Gujarat’s deflator, according to this economist, was 8.3 per cent in 2012-13. If this is true, in 2012-13, Gujarat’s growth rate was equal to all-India average.
Unidow claims to combine “economic intelligence and research”, helping foreign companies in “scenario planning, selection of unbelievable locations for competitive advantage to maximize profits and improving overall efficiency of different business verticals of a company to mitigate corporate risk such as the political risk, regulatory compliance, geopolitical risk -- whether its strategic or operational risk.” It is, however, not known why it refuses to give GSDP rates at current prices – which show the real growth of each state.
Meanwhile, Unidow says it has “revised” political outlook of India to "stable" amid Lok Sabha polls this year. “India's major opposition party BJP is expected to win more than 210 constituencies, which will give a stable government at the centre”, it says. It suggests, this analysis has been arrived on the basis of “prowess researches and studies from the cornerstone of the economy to the important range of government policies.”
Yet, Unidow analysis is significant, as Gujarat development has already become an issue of national debate. Believing that its analysis is quite "exclusive", as it claims, it contends, “Unidow specializes in exclusive economic data provider and core policy research of India, which includes study on economic policies, central bank policies, India's foreign policies, industrial researches and other prominent areas to deliver key results to corporations, federal government agencies, academician, students and individuals.”

Comments

Dalit rights and political tensions: Why is Mevani at odds with Congress leadership?

While I have known Jignesh Mevani, one of the dozen-odd Congress MLAs from Gujarat, ever since my Gandhinagar days—when he was a young activist aligned with well-known human rights lawyer Mukul Sinha’s organisation, Jan Sangharsh Manch—he became famous following the July 2016 Una Dalit atrocity, in which seven members of a family were brutally assaulted by self-proclaimed cow vigilantes while skinning a dead cow, a traditional occupation among Dalits.

Powering pollution, heating homes: Why are Delhi residents opposing incineration-based waste management

While going through the 50-odd-page report Burning Waste, Warming Cities? Waste-to-Energy (WTE) Incineration and Urban Heat in Delhi , authored by Chythenyen Devika Kulasekaran of the well-known advocacy group Centre for Financial Accountability, I came across a reference to Sukhdev Vihar — a place where I lived for almost a decade before moving to Moscow in 1986 as the foreign correspondent of the daily Patriot and weekly Link .

Boeing 787 under scrutiny again after Ahmedabad crash: Whistleblower warnings resurface

A heart-wrenching tragedy has taken place in Ahmedabad. As widely reported, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane crashed shortly after taking off from the city’s airport, currently operated by India’s top tycoon, Gautam Adani. The aircraft was carrying 230 passengers and 12 crew members. As expected, the crash has led to an outpouring of grief across the country. At the same time, there have been demands for the resignation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and the Civil Aviation Minister.

Ahmedabad's civic chaos: Drainage woes, waterlogging, and the illusion of Olympic dreams

In response to my blog on overflowing gutter lines at several spots in Ahmedabad's Vejalpur, a heavily populated area, a close acquaintance informed me that it's not just the middle-class housing societies that are affected by the nuisance. Preeti Das, who lives in a posh locality in what is fashionably called the SoBo area, tells me, "Things are worse in our society, Applewood."

Global NGO slams India for media clampdown during conflict, downplays Pakistan

A global civil rights group, Civicus has taken strong exception to how critical commentaries during the “recent conflict” with Pakistan were censored in India, with journalists getting “targeted”. I have no quarrel with the Civicus view, as the facts mentioned in it are all true.

Whither SCOPE? Twelve years on, Gujarat’s official English remains frozen in time

While writing my previous blog on how and why Narendra Modi went out of his way to promote English when he was Gujarat chief minister — despite opposition from people in the Sangh Parivar — I came across an interesting write-up by Aakar Patel, a well-known name among journalists and civil society circles.

Remembering Vijay Rupani: A quiet BJP leader who listened beyond party lines

Late evening on June 12, a senior sociologist of Indian origin, who lives in Vienna, asked me a pointed question: Of the 241 persons who died as a result of the devastating plane crash in Ahmedabad the other day, did I know anyone? I had no hesitation in telling her: former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, whom I described to her as "one of the more sensible persons in the BJP leadership."

A conman, a demolition man: How 'prominent' scribes are defending Pritish Nandy

How to defend Pritish Nandy? That’s the big question some of his so-called fans seem to ponder, especially amidst sharp criticism of his alleged insensitivity during his journalistic career. One such incident involved the theft and publication of the birth certificate of Masaba Gupta, daughter of actor Neena Gupta, in the Illustrated Weekly of India, which Nandy was editing at the time. He reportedly did this to uncover the identity of Masaba’s father.

Why India’s renewable energy sector struggles under 2,735 compliance hurdles

Recently, during a conversation with an industry representative, I was told how easy it is to set up a startup in Singapore compared to India. This gentleman, who had recently visited Singapore, explained that one of the key reasons Indians living in the Southeast Asian nation prefer establishing startups there is because the government is “extremely supportive” when it comes to obtaining clearances. “They don’t want to shift operations to India due to the large number of bureaucratic hurdles,” he remarked.

Search This Blog