E-Paper
Himachal’s GDP growth pegged at 6.4% for FY23: Economic survey
The state’s real gross domestic product (GDP) or GDP at constant prices (2011-12) in the current FY is estimated to be ₹1,34,576 crire as against the provisional estimate of ₹1,26,433 Cr for FY 2021-22, registering a growth of ₹8,143 crore.
Himachal Pradesh’s economy, as per the advance estimates, is likely to grow at 6.4% in the financial year 2022-23, compared to 7.6% in the FY 2021-22, according to the economic survey presented by chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu in the assembly on Thursday.
The state’s real gross domestic product (GDP) or GDP at constant prices (2011-12) in the current FY is estimated to be ₹1,34,576 crire as against the provisional estimate of ₹1,26,433 Cr for FY 2021-22, registering a growth of ₹8,143 crore.
The nominal GDP (GDP at current prices) in 2022-23 is estimated to be ₹1,95,404 crore as against the provisional estimate ₹1,76,269 crore for 2021-22 showing an absolute increase of ₹19,135 crore. This translates into 10.9% in the current FY as compared to 13.5% in 2021-22.
The gross value added (GVA) from primary sector is likely to grow at a pace of 2%.
Based on the advance estimates, the tertiary sector accounted for 43.6% of the state’s GVA, followed by the secondary sector at 42.7% and the primary sector at 13.7%.
During FY 2022-23, the GVA of the primary sector moved up to ₹16,717 crore as against ₹16,395 crore in 2021-22 at constant prices. As per the advance estimates, the GVA of the secondary sector is estimated at ₹1,60,444 crore against ₹1,56,408 crore in 2021-22 at constant – a growth rate of 7.2% over the previous year, asserts the annual document.
Per capita income (PCI) at current prices for FY 2022-23 is estimated at ₹2,22,227, which is more than the national average.
There is a steep rise in the state’s PCI, going from ₹87,721 in FY 2011-12 to ₹2,22,227 in FY 2022-23, registering a growth rate of 153%.
2% growth estimated in agri & allied sectors
The contribution of the agriculture sector to gross state value added has increased 40% from ₹17,767 crore in 2018-19 to ₹24,847 crore in 2022-23. There is a marked improvement in GSVA of crops from ₹10,286 crore in 2018-19 to ₹15,561 crore in 2022-23
Agriculture and allied sector GSVA is estimated to grow at 2% against a growth rate of 4.9% registered in 2021-22. Livestock rearing sub-sector contributed 1.61% of GSVA and 12% of the agriculture and allied sector’s GSVA in FY 2022-23.
The industry sector is crucial for boosting the state’s economy and generating jobs in Himachal. The contribution of the industry sector (including mining and quarrying) to GSVA in 2022-23 is 42.97%, out of which 30.83% comes from the manufacturing sector, 6.28% from construction, 5.62% from electricity, water supply and other utility services and 0.24% from mining and quarrying.
The industry sector’s GVA is expected to grow by 7.1% while the manufacturing sector is expected to grow at 6.7%, which is the third highest growth rate in the industry sector.
Tourist arrival reaches pre-pandemic levels
Tourist arrival is one of the main indicators of the demand for tourism at a particular destination. After the Covid-19, domestic tourist arrivals have increased from 32.13 lakh in 2020 to 56.37 lakh in 2021 and further to 150.99 lakh in 2022 in absolute terms. This shows that tourist arrivals are reaching pre-pandemic levels, the economic survey states.
Inflation remains moderate
Himachal Pradesh had moderate inflation in the current FY, with the Consumer Price Index-Combined (CPI-C) at 3.9% in December 2022.
From April through December, the Wholesale Price Inflation (WPI) at the State level fell from 15.4% to 5% while the CPI fluctuated between 3.2% and 7.2%.
Frontrunner in SDGs
Himachal Pradesh is the “frontrunner” in sustainable development goals (SDG) progress measurement with the state ranking second in India in terms of SDGs, after Kerala for 2020-21.
In the India Innovation Index 2021, with a score of 14.62, Himachal was ranked fifth among the North eastern and hill states.
As per Social Progress Index (SPI) 2022, Himachal Pradesh ranks 7th and has a score of 63.28, putting it in Tier 1 (very high social progress).
The state was ranked second under the Himalayan States Category of Export Preparedness Index-2021 scoring 40.43 points. Its overall ranking was 18th out of 36 among states and UTs.
Employment scenario
As per the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2021-22, the Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) of all ages for Himachal Pradesh is 58.1%, which is higher than Uttarakhand (40.%), Punjab (41.%), Haryana (35.%) and All India (41.3 per cent).
Worker Population Ratio (WPR) for all ages (15+) for Himachal Pradesh in 2021-22 was 55.8%. More women (50.5%) are actively participating in economic activities than their counterparts.
Unemployment under usual status for persons of all ages in neighbouring states and all of India shows that Himachal has the lowest unemployment rate of 4% as against all India of 4.1%.
