PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s paper — Progressive Punjab: Opportunities Unlimited, released on Tuesday revealed that Punjab has been able to attract more than Rs 44,000 crores industrial investment proposals in last five years despite consequences of economic slow down.
It also pointed out that the state was able to reduce its fiscal deficit to three per cent in fiscal 2014 against 3.2 per cent in fiscal 2013 due to its proactive policies. Releasing its key-findings, PHD Chamber president Sharad Jaipuria said that investment proposals submitted to the State, mainly comprised in sector such as leather and sports goods, meat processing, textiles, electronics and telecommunications, information technology, infrastructure modernisation, automobiles, farm machinery, engineering industries, chemical industries and export oriented units.
“A few of them are intended to advance industries like processing of fruits and vegetables, crop and agro industrial residue like wheat, paddy straw, paddy husk, poultry and animal husbandry, dairy and milk processing,” he added.
The Paper found that Punjab’s per capita income stood at Rs 74,606 (for the financial year of 2012, which is around 23 per cent higher than the national average of Rs 60,603. As per the latest comparable detail in 2012, Punjab is ranked at eleventh in terms of per capita income among all the Indian States.
Punjab’s gross fiscal deficit as a percentage of GSDP has decreased to three per cent in 2014 as compared to 3.2 per cent in 2013. Primary deficit as percentage of GSDP has also decreased to 0.5 per cent from 0.8 pert cent during the same period, it added.
The Paper stated that revenue deficit has shown a decrease from 1.6 per cent in 2013 to 0.6 per cent in 2014, while primary revenue balance has increased from 0.8 per cent in 2013 to 1.9 per cent in 2014.