The Jharkhand Economic Survey 2021-22, tabled by the government in the State Legislative Assembly on Wednesday estimated 8.8 per cent GSDP growth in the Financial Year 2021-22 over the GSDP of 2020-21, while it stated that the average annual growth rate of the State economy was 6.2 per cent between the period 2011-12 and 2018-19.
The survey report prepared by the Centre for Fiscal Studies, Planning cum Finance department, Government of Jharkhand further stated that the economy of Jharkhand grew by 6.6 per cent per annum during the financial year 2004-05 and 2011-12 and the growth rate 8 per cent during the financial years 1999-2000 and 2004-05. The Gross State Domestic Product of Jharkhand was Rs. 2,29,274 lakh crores at 2011-12 prices in the year 2018-19. The per capita income (per capita NSDP) is estimated to be Rs. Rs 79,873 at current prices and Rs. 57,863 at constant prices in the year 2019-20.
The growth rate has decelerated during the last two years (2019-20 and 2020-21). These two years were not normal years as the country’s economy was hit by slowdown in the year 2019-20, which did not leave even the economy of the State untouched. Both the Indian economy and the State’s economy recorded a growth of mere 4 per cent. The year 2020-21 was affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic and the ensuing lockdown affected all the economic activities and disrupted the supply chain of both the consumer and producer good. Covid-19 appropriate behaviour further slowed down the pace of recovery. As a result, the GSDP of the State is estimated to have contracted by 4.7 per cent in the financial year.
Among the three major sectors (the primary, the secondary and the tertiary) of the State's economy, the tertiary sector has grown at the fastest rate between 2011-12 and 2019-20. While the primary sector grew at an average annual rate (CAGR) of 9.1 per cent and the secondary sector at the rate of 6.3 per cent, the tertiary sector grew at the rate of 7.7 per cent in this period.
The tertiary sector is not only the dominant sector in the economy of the State, but its share in the GSVA has also increased over the years. In 2011-12, the beginning of the current round of (SNA), its contribution to the GSVA was 38.5 per cent, which grew upto about 46 per cent by 2019-20. This increase in the share of tertiary sector has happened at the cost of the primary sector. The share of the primary sector has declined from about 28 per cent to about 20 per cent during this period (2011-12 to 2019-20).
The share of the secondary sector has remained almost stable over the years. Its contribution to the GSVA was 38.8 per cent in 2011-12 and 2019-20 as well.
After staying above 6 per cent for more than a year, the rate of inflation in Jharkhand started decreasing since December, 2020. From 6.36 per cent in November, 2020 it decreased to 5.94 per cent in December, 2020. Since then, it has remained below 6 per cent, the mark set by the RBI in its new monetary policy framework.
According to the recently released 'National Multidimensional Poverty Index Baseline Report of the NITI Aayog, 46.16 per cent of the people in the State are poor (the head count poverty). The percentage of multi-dimensional poor in the rural areas is 50.93 per cent and in the urban areas it is 15.26 per cent. There is a wide disparity in the incidence of poverty not only between their rural and urban areas but also among different districts. The districts which are more urbanized and home to the industrial, mining and commercial centres have low incidence of poverty than those which are less urbanized and are devoid of them. The inverse crescent stretching from the east to the south east comprising districts like Dhanbad, Bokaro, Ramgarh, Ranchi and East Singhbhum have the lowest incidence of poverty in the state.