Economic Disparity in Indian States: NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Highlights GDP Imbalance Between High and Low-Income Regions

NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Suman Bery highlighted a concerning economic disparity across Indian states during his lecture at the University of Hyderabad. He revealed that high-income states, representing just 26 percent of India's population, generate a disproportionate 44 percent of the country's GDP.

In contrast, low-income states, which account for 38 percent of the population, contribute only 19 percent to the national GDP. This significant divergence was emphasized during his presentation on 'India's Macro Challenge: Generating and Financing a Big Investment Push' at the 6th Economics Conclave held at the School of Economics.

Mr. Bery explained that development strategies must be tailored differently for states like Tamil Nadu compared to Bihar or Uttar Pradesh due to their varying economic conditions. "This divergence is something we need to worry about," he stated during his address.

Despite these concerns, Bery expressed optimism about the potential for growth in lagging regions. "In principle, the further behind you are, the faster you can grow," he remarked, noting that some of the traditionally underdeveloped BIMARU states (Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh) are showing promising performance. "There is no reason to think that individual states are destined to lag forever," he added.

The Vice-Chairman also shared employment statistics, stating that aggregate employment in India has increased by 150 million, with 80 million women entering agricultural work. He further explained that 40 million of these women are unpaid family workers but still contribute significantly to household economies as part of economic enterprises.