Economy Chhattisgarh

Economy

Chhattisgarh's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at 12 billion USD in current prices. After partition, this mineral-rich state produces 30% of the output of the old Madhya Pradesh state.

The state's economy is further fuelled by the presence of Bhilai Steel Plant, SEC Railway Zone, BALCO Aluminium Plant (Korba), andNational Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) at Korba and Sipat (Bilaspur) and "South Eastern Coal Fields Limited" (SECL). Korba & Bilaspur are the power hubs of the state, from where electricity is supplied to several other Indian states. Chhattisgarh's southern area contains iron ore which NMDC is mining to meet iron demand in India as well as export. NMDC is located in Dantewara district. Recently ESSAR has started transporting iron ore through pipe lines to Vizag. Recently, three new power plant were proposed in Bhaiyathan and Premnagar of Surajpur District. Many private companies individually and together with the Chhattisgarh government have signed memorandum for installation of power plants.

The state is also launching an ambitious plan to become biofuel self-sufficient by 2015 by planting crops of jatropha.

The economy of Chhattisgarh has grown rapidly in recent years: GDP grew 7.35% from 2004–05 to 2008–09. More than 80% of the population depends on agriculture, and 43% of the land is cultivated. The main crops are paddy, wheat, maize, groundnut, pulses andoilseeds. Chhattisgarh is also called the "rice bowl of India". It has very good irrigation systems, with dams and canals on various rivers.

Forests occupy 41.33% of the area (as per the latest report by the Indian Forest Service) and there are rich forest resources including wood, tandu leaves, honey and lac.

Chhattisgarh is also rich in minerals. It produces 20% of the country's steel and cement. Iron-ore, limestone, dolomite, coal, bauxite are abundant. It is the only tin-ore producing state in the country. Other minerals include korandum, garnet, quartz, marble and diamonds.

Industry is significant part of state's economy. State-owned industries include Bhilai Steel Plant and NTPC. Big private companies include Balco (sterlite industry), Lafarge and Jindal steel.

[edit]Issues of development and insurgency

Chhattisgarh State is rich in unused timber and mineral resources. There are disagreements between local indigenous peoples and the national government over the use of these resources.

Also, an ongoing insurgency between Maoists and the central Government of India has produced much bloodshed. The controversy surrounding the arrest of Dr Binayak Sen is related to the insurgency. Maoist insurgency has been main source of instability, recently they ambushed to kill 40 policemen.

[edit]Transport

The rail network in Chhattisgarh is centered around Bilaspur, which is zonal headquarters of South East Central Railway of Indian Railways. The other main railway junction is Raipur, followed by Durg Junction which is also a starting point of many long distance trains. These three junctions are well-connected to the major cities of India.

The roadways infrastructure is also slowly picking up in the state. The National Highway 6 (Mumbai to Kolkata) passes through the state. The state also hosts National Highway 43 which starts from Raipur and goes up to Vishakhapatnam. National Highway 16 fromHyderabad ends at Bhopalpatnam in Dantewada district. National Highway 78 From Katni (MP) ends at Gumla (Jharkhand) pass through Koria, Surajpur, Sarguja, Jashpur District. The state has 11 National Highways (2,225 kilometres).

The air infrastructure is minor. The sole commercially operating airport is in Raipur, the capital city. Of late, Raipur has shown low upsurge in passenger traffic. Raipur has links to top cities of the country i.e. Delhi (5 flights per day), Bombay (2 flight), Kolkata (2),Bhopal (2), Indore (2). It is also connected to Jaipur (1 flight a day), Nagpur (2 flights), Bhubaneshwar, Ahmedabad (2), Gwalior, Vizag , Hyderabad (2) and Bangalore(1).

[edit]Airports

• Raipur Airport
 
• Bilaspur Airport
 
• Jagdalpur Airport

[edit]Other Airstrips

• Nandini Airport, Bhilai
• Chakarbhata Airstrip,Bilaspur
• Baikunth Airstrip, Baikunth
• Kondatarai Airstrip, Raigarh
• JSPL’s Airstrip, Raigarh
• Darima Airstrip, Ambikapur
• Korba Airstrip, Korba
• Agdih Airstrip, Jashpur
• Dondi Airstrip, Dondi, Durg

Some New airstrips have been proposed for more connectivity:

• Kanker
 
• Kabirdham
 
• Surajpur
 
• Dantewada
 
• Bijapur
 
• Korba
 
• Balrampur
 
• Rajnandgaon
 
• Raigarh

[edit]