Madhya Pradesh still remains a laggard in GDP growth: Report

Madhya Pradesh's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) remained nearly half of the national average of 8.49% in the last five years, making it one of the states to perform poorly in the country.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Madhya Pradesh also fared badly among the so-called four 'BIMARU' states with an average 4.89% GDP growth between 2004-'05 and 2008-'09, according to the latest Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) report.

Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh form the BIMARU states due to their poor growth rate.

Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's claim to rid Madhya Pradesh of the BIMARU tag falls flat in the face of a dismal performance on the GDP front, although the state's plan size has more than doubled, from Rs6,710 crore in 2004-'05 to Rs14,182 crore in 2008-'09, the report's figures show.

Gujarat stood first with an average of 11.05% growth, while Bihar occupied the second slot with average 11.03% growth annually for five years to emerge as the fastest-growing state, the report said.

The average GDP growth of Rajasthan was 6.25%, while that of Uttar Pradesh remained at 6.29% during the period, it said.

Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, carved out from three of these BIMARU states, have also done well on the GDP front compared to Madhya Pradesh, it said.