The success story of bihar

Monday, March 12, 2007

Bihar farm sector on downslide, services up: survey

Monday, March 12, 2007
PATNA, MAR 11: Despite agriculture being the mainstay of Bihar’s economy, it has grown by just 3.5 to 4.5 % since 2000-01, while manufacturing and industry witnessed a decline from 6.59 % in 2000-01 to 4.17 % in2004-05, but the services sector posted a consistently high growth rate between 6.5 and 7.5 %.
The share of agriculture in the state’s economy has fallen from 48.8% from 1993-94 to 42% in 2004-05, that of manufacturing sector remained unaltered at nine% and services registered a handsome growth from 41.3 to 49%, according to the economic survey 2006-07 presented in the Bihar assembly by deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi.
The survey, the first presented in the Bihar legislature, said the total flood-prone area in the state was 73.06% of its geographical area and 17.2% of the total flood-prone area in the country.
Identifying recurrent floods as a major roadblock in agricultural development, it suggested construction of dams in upper catchment areas of Kosi, Gandak, Bagmati and Mahanananda rivers to fight the menance in the long-run. In the short-term it suggested construction and maintenance of embankments along the rivers. Stating that tubewells accounted for 63% of created irrigation capacity in the state, the survey said a very high dependence on irrigation by tubewells and operation of diesel tubewells due to lack of power infrastructure in rural areas.
—PTI

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