Orissa envisages 9 per cent growth rate in Eleventh Five-Year Plan

The Eleventh Five-Year Plan has estimated a growth rate of 9 per cent in the state of Orissa with a projected outlay of US$ 7.1 billion during the plan period, Governor Murlidhar Chandrakant Bhandare said in his address on March 8, 2010 to the state Assembly.

Mr Bhandare informed that the state government had strived to achieve a sustainable and inclusive higher economic growth, accelerated overall development, reduction of regional, social and gender disparities and a faster rate of poverty reduction.

The Governor clearly accredited the steady economic performance by the state to the economic reform measures undertaken by the state government, which led to perceptible improvement in the financial condition of the state. Improvement in the finances of the State has not only resulted in increase of capital outlay but has considerably increased the size of the annual plan. He also further added that improved fiscal situation has made it possible for the state government to increase the its share of centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) from US$ 85.51 million in 2005-06 to US$ 418.02 million in 2009-10 so as to access central assistance for CSS at a much higher scale.

The net debt stock levels too have come down from 51.50 per cent of gross state domestic product (GSDP) in 2003-04 to 29.82 per cent of GSDP in 2008-09 and the state is nearing the benchmark level of 28 per cent as recommended by 12th Finance Commission, he remarked.

The Governor also pointed out that even with improvement in fiscal situation, the state government had still not resorted to open market borrowings during 2006-07 to 2008-09, as a result of which the state government was on the threshold of achieving debt sustainability.

(Source: CII Info Alert, March 10, 2010)