The Economic Survey (2017-18) of Bihar claimed a structural transformation of the State’s economy particularly due to high growth in the service sector. The growth rates of GSDP are higher than the growth rate of about 7 per cent for the national economy.
The per capita income of Bihar which was 31.6 per cent of all India average is increased to 32.4 per cent.
Deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi, who also holds finance portfolio, laid the Economic Survey report in the Assembly on Monday.
He said Bihar has consistently been a revenue surplus State and this surplus increased from Rs 5,101 crore in 2012-13 to Rs 10,819 crore in 2016-17. It is projected to be Rs 14,556 crore during 2017-18, he added. “During the last decade the State income at constant prices grew annually at 10.1 percent but in the immediate past the growth rate of GSDP was 7.5 per cent in 2015-16 and 10.3 percent in 2016-17,” claimed Modi.
During these periods Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had alliance with RJD in the Government.
The Nitish Government started practice of publishing Economic Survey since 2006 with Modi as Finance Minister constantly but for a gap of four years. In the infrastructure sector, Modi said, the total number of registered motor vehicles has been growing annually at 11.9 percent during the period 2011-12 to 2016-17.
Similarly, the number of telephone connection increased phenomenally from 10 lakh in 2001 to 8.49 crore in 2017. “Bihar witnessed a substantial increase in tele-density from 1.2 to 61 percent between 2001-17,” he added.
The highly encouraging improvement was seen in the energy sector. This sector witnessed 120 per cent growth in six years from 1712 MW in 2011-12 to 3769 MW in 2016-17. The peak deficit in power has been around 30 per cent for several years has now been reduced to 14 per cent.
Modi said there has been a significant growth of 12.1 percent, an increase of Rs 26,263 crore, in the total deposits and of 11.5 percent or Rs 8,348 crore in the total credit in 2015-16 over the previous year. The corresponding national growth rates are 7.5 percent for deposits and 9.4 per cent for credit.