Statsguru: 7 charts show economic growth of northeast India in past few yrs

The mistaken ambush by the army in Nagaland last week that killed six people, and the subsequent violence in which several more lives were lost, has cast a shadow on a heartening trend observed in the Northeast over the past few years. 

Violence in the seven Northeastern states of India had fallen significantly from 2014 to 2019, the government told Parliament two years ago (chart 1). Violent activities had reduced by three-fourths in the region. And loss of human life had also been controlled to a considerable extent (chart 2). 

Though there was numerical improvement in the situation in terms of violence, economic challenges continue to ail the sunrise states of India. 

The region’s economy (real gross domestic product) grew at a fast pace till 2016-17, after which, the growth has been volatile and wavering (chart 3). India’s growth in general took a hit after 2017-18, and experts have linked it to demonetisation and the structural changes that happened due to the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax. 

The region’s per capita income (gross state domestic product per person) is lower than the national average; it is also lower than the average of large states (chart 4). 

If we look at non-farm incomes, most Northeastern states exhibit higher levels than the national average (chart 5), according to data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (2019-20). This could imply that agricultural incomes are subdued in the Northeast. This raises questions about the economic prosperity of the people. 

Labour participation in the seven Northeastern states is close to the national average (chart 6). But unemployment is way higher. In fact, Nagaland exhibits the highest general and youth unemployment rates among all states of India (chart 7).

StatsGuru is a weekly feature. Every Monday, Business Standard guides you through the numbers you need to know to make sense of the headlines.