Inequalities in Economic Development: Comparative Assessment of Panjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh

The economic reforms proposed in 1991 were drastic in relation to the conservative path that Indian economic policy had pass through since planning was introduced in 1951. It is safe to assume that the effects of such significant reforms would take a few years to become visible and show up in most macro-economic indicators. There is a large body of literature documenting the alarming inter-regional inequalities in Indian Economy. This paper attempts to document the performance of the five northern states of India: Panjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh in what we call the ‘settled’ post-reform period 1994-95 to 2014-15, using the data from the ‘Data for use of Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission’ prepared by the Planning Commission dated 10th March, 2014. However, inter-state disparities have not gained the much focused attention. So, from the policy point of view, intra-state disparities requires the similar kind of focused documentation in today’s scenario for balanced regional development of the Indian Economy.