New approach to calculate district domestic product

The state directorate of Economics and Statistics (DES) is gearing up to compile the 'real' district domestic product (DDP). It will soon gather statistics from the service sector along with the primary and secondary sectors through a bottom-up approach, for the purpose.

Until now, the department has been partly compiling and partly apportioning state data onto the districts to estimate the DDP. This is for the first time that the department would be compiling the DDP by collecting all the data directly from the districts.

Incidentally, Andhra Pradesh is also the first state in the country to estimate the gross state domestic product (GSDP) on a quarterly basis since 2002-03, on the guidelines of the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO).

"We have no problem in collecting data of the primary and secondary sectors from the districts. But for district data pertaining to the service sector such as telecommunications, railways, software, cable, and courier services, we have been apportioning the state data onto the districts based on suitable district-wise indicators. However, from next March, we would be collecting data of the service sector directly from the districts," said Saroja Rama Rao, director, Directorate of Economics and Statistics (DES).

The problem in compilation of the DDP in the commodity producing sectors has been the non-availability of district-wise prices and hence were averaged to state prices, wherever not available.

In the non-commodity producing sectors, where district-wise data was not available, statistics were compiled apportioning the state data based on certain indicators.

The department would commence a distributive trade survey from March 2006 to compile data pertaining to the tertiary sector of the districts. "The survey would help us build the emerging gaps in the service sector by capturing them," she said.

The directorate in its estimation of the GSDP has also dispensed with the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) and the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) for a new quarterly wide economic survey in the past two quarters. The new quarterly wide economic survey would compile data on manufacturing sector.

"To start with, we were asked to prepare a district business register for two districts by the Union ministry of statistics and programme implementation. But we compiled data for all the 23 districts in the state," said Saroja.

The directorate would test data from the survey for compatibility and would completely dispense with the IIP and ASI by the end of next fiscal, she said.

The department recently conducted a workshop on behalf of the CSO for southern states on 'State income and related aggregates'. The workshop also discussed the methodology to be adopted for compiling the DDP.