Arunachal Pradesh’s per capita income above national average- Rajiv Gandhi University (RGU) economics head Prof S K Nayak

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ITANAGAR: Arunachal Pradesh’s per capita income (PCI) of 84.64 per cent in respect to the national average in 1985-86 rose to 18 per cent above national average in 2017-18, posing serious questions, said Rajiv Gandhi University (RGU) economics department head Prof S K Nayak.

Highlighting the State’s economic growth during a national seminar here on Saturday, he said the formula-based calculation was proved wrong after painstaking efforts involving higher authorities of the State government as the State recorded agricultural growth of 0.5 per cent, 24.4 per cent industrial and service sector 6.08 per cent according to government data.

He doubted the industrial growth, particularly mining, quarrying and manufacturing that recorded abysmally high growth rate of 49% and 40% respectively during 2011-17.

RGU Vice chancellor Prof Saket Khuswaha said that the available natural stock and regeneration are parameters for such calculation but the stock depletion might have been taken into account without considering the available stock. It may be mentioned here that Arunachal Pradesh, with over 50,000 sq km of moderate to very dense forests, is equivalent to 550 million cubic metre growing stock or living assets (equivalent to 2000 million metric tons of carbon dioxide) that serves as one of the major ‘carbon sinks’ or ‘lungs’ of the globe, State Forest Research Institute director P Subramanyam had said in 2012.

Responding to a question from former VC Prof Tamo Mibang as to whether there was any survey on PCI of people living in higher reaches along border areas and on other side in China, Prof Nayak replied positively, saying comparatively it was higher in China side.

“Arunachal Pradesh’s PCI is Rs 1, 19, 481 as mentioned in the list of the Indian States and Union Territories of GDP per capita,” he added.

Replying to another query if the GDP formula was correct, he said that it has international dynamism and changes from nation to nation.

Also read: Arunachal news