Socio-Economic Development in Gujaratsocio-Economic Development in Gujarat

Abstract

Though the State of Gujarat has been the front runner in the overall economic development of the country, there exist tremendous regional disparities in the levels of socio-economic development. This paper initiates a public debate on the regional imbalances in the State. The socio-economic development was measured with the help of 57 indicators for the period 1991 (pre-reform) and 2001 (post-reform) using factor analysis technique. The findings revealed that the development is biased in favour of the Golden Corridor i.e., from Vapi to Mehsana. All the districts of Saurashtra except Rajkot, the districts of Banaskantha, Paton, Narmada and Kutchh may be considered as low-developed. It is suggested to tackle this grave concern of regional imbalances