Uneven development in India
Although India has undergone rapid economic development in the last 20 years, it has great variations in wealth within the country. The Human Development Index (HDI) places India 132nd out of 191 countries , with around 10% of the nation's population still living on $2.15 (US dollar) a day.
Generally, the states in the south and west (with the exception of Rajasthan and Kerala) have a far higher level of development than the states in the north and east.
These disparities are due to several reasons:
- Coastal locations such as Mumbai (in Maharashtra) historically benefitted from being linked to trade routes with the rest of the world. This is in contrast to landlocked states such as Bihar. This gap increased further when coastal locations allowed the south and the west to develop large container ports, which linked these states to an increasingly globalised world.
- The south and the west also had the lowest rates of natural increase compared to the high rates of natural increase in the north and the east. In Kerala, in the south, fertility rates are now 1.8 - only slightly higher than the UK.
- The An increase in production of cereals/grains in countries such as India. This allowed developing countries to become more self-sufficient. (and also the increase in food exports) was greatest in the south and the west compared to the north and the west. Rajasthan, which borders the rich state of Gujrat, is often affected by drought and crop failure due to the failure of the monsoon.
These reasons led to the positive This occurs when a positive change happens, which then has a knock-on effect on other businesses. For example a new office may open, which leads to an increase in lunchtime sandwich sales at the local café and more bus passengers. in the south and the west where a high level of development created a well-educated work force. This then attracted foreign investment from A company that operates in many different countries., further increasing the wealth of the south and the west. In contrast, the north and east of India are landlocked, therefore cannot directly trade internationally. This deters foreign investors from these regions. This can result in a lack of schools, transport networks and employment opportunities causing young people to move out of the region towards successful cities. This is known as brain drain.