If you have not read the first part, Please check bhalchandra:-a-myth-or-reality
Now, let us examine the unsaid parts of the Gujarat story. Many anti-Modi fans would rather prefer to sit on porcupines than discuss them..
Quality of Growth: The real issue in the growth rate of GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product i.e. GDP of the state) is not the absolute growth rate itself (which in any case differs only in the last two decimals among the top states, when compared over the entire period). The real issue is the quality of this growth. Agriculture sector, as is widely known, is the largest employer in India and in that sense, is the most “inclusive growth” possible. When measured over the last 10 years, the agriculture growth rate of Gujarat is higher than every other state in the country!
Rural Poverty Line: The drop in share of population below poverty line in rural areas between 2004-05 and 2009-10 has been remarkable in Gujarat at 13% reduction (from 39% to 26%), which puts Gujarat among the top few states in this parameter. (Tendulkar methodology, compared between 2004-05 and 2009-10, Page 45 of 232, Planning Commission Report). This is a natural corollary of the earlier point about the quality of GDP growth, but remains largely an untold story so far.
Quality of Governance: The Gujarat growth story is more about providing effective governance, which Mr Dgivijay Singh conveniently and neatly sidesteps! At a time when corruption scandals emerge like mushroom in a rainy season across every major state – be it Adarsh in Maharashtra, or Jagan Reddy in Andhra Pradesh or CWG in Delhi, Gujarat has remained largely unscathed with no major corruption scandal emerging, which is no mean feat!
Basic infrastructure: The basic infrastructure viz. Power, Water supply and public transport are again integral part of the Gujarat story, which anti-modi fans do not even dare touched upon! Gujarat is among the very few Power surplus states in the country today, despite having such high levels of industrialization. The water infrastructure in Gujarat has improved significantly in the last decade because of the number of initiatives taken by the government, with the involvement of local panchayats (Data reference not readily available, but anecdotal evidence confirms this. Read Ms. Meera Sanyal’s blog on this after on-ground visits to Mehsana and Sabarkantha districts). Ahmedabad BRTS is a good public transport success story comparable to international standards, which finds no mention in the author’s column.
The list can go on.
Refer the following video as well...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wzu8P1ZS_vo
and check related ones which will come in the sidebar...
One must also not forget that Gujarat has achieved all this growth despite the state being the ONLY major state that has a prohibition on manufacture and sale of liquor, which is the largest source of revenue for all major states (the compensation in lieu of this loss from Central Government is a pittance).
There are more anecdotal stories and research papers that provide unbiased analytical opinion on Gujarat’s development. It is NOT my assertion (or for that matter, most balanced analysts’) that Gujarat has already reached pinnacle of development comparable to Scandinavian countries! But to deny the growth that the state has achieved in the last decade, through twisting statistics reeks of cheap stunt for electoral purposes!
Now, let us examine the unsaid parts of the Gujarat story. Many anti-Modi fans would rather prefer to sit on porcupines than discuss them..
Quality of Growth: The real issue in the growth rate of GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product i.e. GDP of the state) is not the absolute growth rate itself (which in any case differs only in the last two decimals among the top states, when compared over the entire period). The real issue is the quality of this growth. Agriculture sector, as is widely known, is the largest employer in India and in that sense, is the most “inclusive growth” possible. When measured over the last 10 years, the agriculture growth rate of Gujarat is higher than every other state in the country!
Rural Poverty Line: The drop in share of population below poverty line in rural areas between 2004-05 and 2009-10 has been remarkable in Gujarat at 13% reduction (from 39% to 26%), which puts Gujarat among the top few states in this parameter. (Tendulkar methodology, compared between 2004-05 and 2009-10, Page 45 of 232, Planning Commission Report). This is a natural corollary of the earlier point about the quality of GDP growth, but remains largely an untold story so far.
Quality of Governance: The Gujarat growth story is more about providing effective governance, which Mr Dgivijay Singh conveniently and neatly sidesteps! At a time when corruption scandals emerge like mushroom in a rainy season across every major state – be it Adarsh in Maharashtra, or Jagan Reddy in Andhra Pradesh or CWG in Delhi, Gujarat has remained largely unscathed with no major corruption scandal emerging, which is no mean feat!
Basic infrastructure: The basic infrastructure viz. Power, Water supply and public transport are again integral part of the Gujarat story, which anti-modi fans do not even dare touched upon! Gujarat is among the very few Power surplus states in the country today, despite having such high levels of industrialization. The water infrastructure in Gujarat has improved significantly in the last decade because of the number of initiatives taken by the government, with the involvement of local panchayats (Data reference not readily available, but anecdotal evidence confirms this. Read Ms. Meera Sanyal’s blog on this after on-ground visits to Mehsana and Sabarkantha districts). Ahmedabad BRTS is a good public transport success story comparable to international standards, which finds no mention in the author’s column.
The list can go on.
Refer the following video as well...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wzu8P1ZS_vo
and check related ones which will come in the sidebar...
One must also not forget that Gujarat has achieved all this growth despite the state being the ONLY major state that has a prohibition on manufacture and sale of liquor, which is the largest source of revenue for all major states (the compensation in lieu of this loss from Central Government is a pittance).
There are more anecdotal stories and research papers that provide unbiased analytical opinion on Gujarat’s development. It is NOT my assertion (or for that matter, most balanced analysts’) that Gujarat has already reached pinnacle of development comparable to Scandinavian countries! But to deny the growth that the state has achieved in the last decade, through twisting statistics reeks of cheap stunt for electoral purposes!
No comments:
Post a Comment