SHILLONG, Dec 8: Meghalaya has recovered from its last rank in terms of growth in gross state domestic product (GSDP) during the period of financial year (FY) 2013-2018 to 19th rank during FY 2018-2021, the state government has said.
“Despite COVID-19, the economy of Meghalaya recovered at a very fast pace on account of major thrust through government expenditure and externally aided projects. The state of Meghalaya recorded a strong GSDP growth of 8.2 per cent for the year 2021-22,” Commissioner and Secretary of Planning department, Dr. Vijay Kumar D said.
“While the growth rate for Meghalaya’s GSDP during 2011-12 to 2017-18 was the slowest among all the states/UTs of India (33rd rank), it grew at a faster rate during 2018-19 to 2020-21. From the slowest-growing state, it went on to become the 19th fastest-growing state/UT in India,” he said.
Maintaining that the “strong growth” of Meghalaya can be attributed to the increase in government expenditure, Kumar said since 2018, the state government expenditure has doubled from Rs. 9,858 crore in 2017-18 to Rs. 18,881 crore in 2022-23, and that exponential increase in expenditure by almost 50 per cent and large-scale investments have led the state to record an “impressive growth” and put the state on the national development pedestal.
“The data also revealed a low GSDP which led to the state to rank bottom on the national scale, especially during the period of 2013-18. As per the RBI released data on GSDP of states, the compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) for Meghalaya’s GSDP during 2011-12 to 2017-18 was 2 percent which was the lowest among all the States/UTs of India,” the statement said, adding that Meghalaya, however, grew at a faster rate during 2018-19 to 2020-21, with an impressive jump of 13 places nationally.
“Recently, published data from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has released GSDP for 33 states for the period of 2021-22 and 2020-21 at constant prices. The RBI released GSDP data of all states for the financial year of 2020-21 and as a practice, RBI also releases 10-year GSDP for all states/UTs from which CAGR can be calculated,” he said.
“Meghalaya’s growth has been slow during the period. However, detailed analysis reveals that the slow growth rate can be attributed to the period of FY 2013-2015. The state has further recovered and witnessed strong economic growth during FY 2021-22,” Kumar asserted. (UNI)
