Northern states lagging on socio-economic front: PHDCCI

Chandigarh, Sep 24 (UNI) The northern Indian states were lagging behind on critical economic and social indicators and urgently needed to remove trade barriers to keep pace with the rest of the country, according to a PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) study.

The study, conducted under the unique North India Common Economy (NICE) initiative of the PHDCCI, stressed the need for a common economic agenda for the states in north India saying that removal of trade barriers would mean an increase by 1.5 to 2 per cent in collective State Domestic Product in the North.

Refering to the study PHDCCI, President Ms Sushma Berlia today said today that the northern block, comprising ten states and one union territory represents 44 per cent of the geographical area but contributes only 30 per cent to the industrial output of the country.

While it accounts for 40 per cent of the total exports of the country, it lags behind in almost all critical indicators like infrastructure, investment climate, consumer market and even technical education sector, she said.

In the states of Haryana, Rajasthan, UP, MP and Chhattisgarh there is a serious education problem, including a lack of vocational education and skill-formation infrastructure the study revealed. The South has almost double the number of engineering seats than the North, the same holds true for management institutes, it added.

Compared to the South, particularly Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala, and with the exception of Rajasthan, the law and order problem in the North is very critical, the study claimed. This is moderately serious in Punjab, Haryana, Uttranchal and Chhattisgarh and extremely serious in Jammu and Kashmir and UP.

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