Modeling district level economic disparities across Uttarakhand, India

Economic development in Uttarakhand, a state in India has accelerated in the last decade however; the progress is largely confined to the plains. The study attempts to analyze district level economic disparities in Uttarakhand. The six key economic development variables namely, per capita income, infrastructure, health, education, industrial employment and tourism have been examined and modeled in the study. The districts have been ranked in their respective order of economic development using the weights derived through the pairwise comparison of the identified development variables. There is no evidence of decline in regional disparities across the hill and plain districts. The economic growth has become more polarized in the plains. Interestingly, four out of the six districts of Kumaon division have emerged as economically the most backward districts. The study concludes with policy implications.