Inter-State Analysis of Manufacturing Performance in India:2001-02 to 2013-14

Regional industrial growth has been a key area of interest for both scholars and policymakers. The literature argues that uneven regional industrial growth aggravates the regional disparities in overall economic growth and development. This paper examines the state-level manufacturing performance of India by analyzing the growth in manufacturing employment, value-added and labor productivity in the 20 states during the period from 2001-02 to 2013-14. The paper finds that regional industrial disparities continue to persist but show a declining trend in the post 2007-08 period. This decline is due to the relatively improved performance of states such as Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Assam. The improvement appears to be an outcome of the effective implementation of industrial policies in these states.