Bihar topped in Gross State Domestic Product with 13.1 Per Cent Growth in 2011-12

According to data released by Ministry of Statistics of India on 1 June 2012, Bihar emerged as the state with highest economic growth rate in the country. The state which until recently was synonymous with poverty, recorded an impressive 13.1 per cent growth in 2011-12. Bihar topped the list for second consecutive year. The state’s economy even surpassed the Punjab on the back of four years of double-digit growth.

The state was closely followed by Delhi and Puducherry. Chhattisgadh and Goa were the other two states in the list of top five states. Tamil Nadu and Gujarat, the two highly industrialized states registered the growth of 9.4 per cent and 9.1 per cent respectively in the fiscal year 2011-12.

Punjab, leading food grain producing state of India, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, both the heart of the IT sector of the country, and Uttar Pradesh, the country's most populous state, registered growth of 6.5% in 2011-12, lower than India's GDP growth.

With the Bihar government taking numerous measures to attract investment in the state, the result is quite visible with the growth number rising on constant basis. An improved law and order situation and developing infrastructure in the state are apparently boosting the investment sentiments of the industrial houses in the country which are now coming ahead with proposals to set up factory in the state. Agricultural productivity has also taken a quantum jump in the state apparently contributing to the overall growth of the state. A slew of development measures have also been put into place by the government to ensure enhanced education and medical facilities in the state.