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HYDERABAD, Dec. 1

ANDHRA Pradesh, under the Chief Ministership of Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, has earned the reputation of the most happening State in the country. But the facts seem to be somewhat different.

According to the "Andhra Pradesh Development Report", brought out by the Centre for Economic and Social Studies (CESS), the economic growth of the State has slowed down in the 1990s.

In comparison with other States, the rank of Andhra Pradesh is somewhere in the middle in both growth and human development. The performance in general has been closer or marginally below that of all India average.

The report stated that the growth of the State Domestic Product (SDP) of the State in 1980s was similar to that of all India, but in the 1990s it was one and half per cent lower. The per capita income growth also was one per cent lower than all India in the 1990s.

The trends in investments showed that the growth rates declined drastically in the 1990s, particularly in agriculture.

Similarly, the report, compiled by CESS Director, Prof. Mahendra Dev and his colleague Mr C. Ravi, said the growth of mean consumption for rural Andhra Pradesh was the lowest among southern States between 1993-94 and 1999-2000.

The human development index across States shows that the relative position of the State has marginally declined in 2001 compared to earlier decades. Although there have been improvements in health and education, the levels are still low compared to many other States particularly other south Indian States.

On the positive side, the report indicates certain bright spots. There has been a significant decline in the fertility rate in the State. The State has also witnessed the emergence of women power, particularly through self-help groups. It has made rapid strides in the arena of information technology. Notable progress has also been made in the participatory management of land, water and forest.

Inaugurating a two-day seminar on the report at CESS, the Andhra Pradesh Governor, Dr C. Rangarajan, however, found "some difficulty in reconciling" the data provided by the authors of the report "with the data available from certain other sources".

For instance, he said, a Planning Commission document indicated that the growth rate in gross State domestic product (GSDP) of the State between 1980-81 and 1990-91 was 4.3 per cent while in the period 1993-94 to 1998-99, it was 4.9 per cent.

CESS or similar organisation must undertake a continuous cross section studies of select villages and measure the changes in several parameters bearing on poverty, he added.

The Governor also wanted CESS to undertake a detailed study on the success of self-help groups in the State based on a wide sample drawn from different regions.

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