SOCIO- ECONOMIC FABRIC OF RAJASTHAN STATE

Transcription

1 17 CHAPTER 2 SOCIO- ECONOMIC FABRIC OF RAJASTHAN STATE 2.1 FORMATION OF RAJASTHAN 2.2 LOCATION 2.3 PHYSICAL OR NATURAL DIVISION OF RAJASTHAN I. Western sandy plains II. Aravalli Range And Hilly Region III. Eastern Pains IV. South-eastern Rajasthan Pathar (Hadoti or Harauti Plateau) 2.4 POSITION OF RAJASTHAN IN INDIAN ECONOMY I. Position of Rajasthan in Relation to Population II. Sex Ratio III. Density of Population IV. Literacy Rate 2.5 POSITION OF RAJASTHAN IN RELATION TO AREA 2.6 POSITION OF RAJASTHAN IN RELATION TO AGRICULTURE I. Pattern of Land Utilisation II. Average Size of Operation Holdings III. Irrigation, Use of Fertilizers, etc. IV. Production of Main Crops 2.7 INDUSTRIAL POSITION

2 18 I. Share in Gross Domestic Products ie (GDP) II. Position of Factory Sector 2.8 SOCIO-ECONOMIC INFRASTRUCTURE I. Electricity II. Roads III. Railways IV. Education V. Per Capital Income 2.9 MAIN FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR SLOW ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF RAJASTHAN I. Weak Economic base II. Adverse Geographical and Physical Conditions III. High Growth Rate of Population IV. Problems Related with Groundwater in the State V. Social Backwardness VI. Lack of Financial resources. VII. Poor Implementation of Plans 2.10 SUMMING UP

3 FORMATION OF RAJASTHAN The present state of Rajasthan was formed after a long process of integration in seven stages which began on March 18, 1948 and ended on November 1,1956. In the beginning, Matsya Union was formed by joining together State like Alwar, Bharatpur, Dholpur and Karauli. Former Rajasthan was formed on March 25, 1948 by integrating nine States, viz., Banswara, Bundi, Dungarpur, Jhalawar, Kishangarh, Kota, Pratapgarh, Shahpura and Tonk. On April 18, 1948, United State of Rajasthan was formed by including Udaipur State in it. On March 30, 1949 the States of Bikaner, Jaipur, Jaisalmer and Jodhpur joined it. Matsya was merged with it on May 15, In the sixth stage on February 7, 1950, Sirohi State was fully merged with it, and finally in the seventh stage on November 1,1956, after coming into force of the State Reorganisation Act, Ajmer-Merwara State, Sunel Tappa Village of MP were merged with it and Sironj region of Jhalawar district was transferred to MP. In this way the process of the formation of Rajasthan was completed in nine years ( ) in seven stages. Thus, the state of Rajasthan, before its formation consisted of 19 princely states, the British administered territory of Ajmer- Merwara and three chiefships (Kushalgarh, Lava and Neemrana). Before integration it was called Rajputana; after integration it

4 20 came to be known as Rajasthan. The location of 33 districts is shown in the map on the next page. 2.2 LOCATION Rajasthan is situated in the north-western part of India. It lies between , and north latitudes and , and , east longitudes. North Arabia, part of Egypt and Liberia, northern Sahara and part of Mexico are also located between these latitudes, but the climatic conditions of Rajasthan are not so severe as are found in these countries. The southern part of Rajasthan is about 225 km from the Gulf of Kutch and about 400 km from the Arabian Sea. Rajasthan is bounded by Pakistan in the west and northwest; by the state of Punjab in the north; by Haryana in the northeast by Uttar Pradesh in the east, by Madhya Pradesh in the south-east and Gujarat in the south-west. As mentioned in the previous chapter, it is the largest state now in terms of area in India. The international border with Pakistan is to the extent of 1,040 kilometres. For security and other reasons, the government has to incur a lot of expenditure on border area development. From east to west it is about 869 km and from north to south it is about 826 km long. Due to vast area in the state, it possesses various types of physical features. 2.3 PHYSICAL OR NATURAL DIVISIONS OF RAJASTHAN

5 21 The most notable feature of Rajasthan is the aravalli range of hills. This is one of the oldest mountain system of the world. It intersects the state diagonally from one end to the other, and cuts it into two parts. It runs from north-east to south-west. The area lying to the west of the Aravallis is known as Western Sandy Plains and to its east lies the northern part of the Central Highlands. These two major divisions have a variety of physiographic and relief features. On the basis of the existing relief features, the state can be divided into the following physical or natural divisions: 1. Western Sandy Plains (a) Sandy Arid plains ( Marusthali) (b) Semi-Arid Transitional Plains ( Rajasthan Bagar) (i) Luni basin (Godwar Tract) (ii) Plain of Interior Drainage (Shekhawati Tract ) (iii) Ghaggar Plain 2. Aravalli Range and Hilly Region (a) Aravalli Range and Bhorat Plateau (b) North Eastern Hilly Region 3. Eastern Plains (a) Banas Basin (b) Chappan Plains 4. South Eastern Rajasthan Pathar ( Hadoti or Harauti Plateau ) (a) Vindhyan Scarpland (b) Deccan Lava Plateau.

6 POSITION OF RAJASTHAN IN INDIAN ECONOMY Earlier, Rajasthan Was regarded as a backward region in a backward economy of india. Firstly, Indian economy was regarded as an underdeveloped and Backward economy, and secondly, Rajasthan economy was also like a Backward region in it. But, more recently, it would be quite appropriate to designate Rajasthan as a developing region in the developing economy of India. Both the national economy and the regional economy are on development path in the plan period. Much has been achieved. But much more remain to be achieved. Rajasthan is one of the 17 non-special category state in india. Therefore, under central planassistances, its share was 30 per cent grant and 70 per cent loan; while 11 Special category states got 10 per cent grant and 10 per cent loan as their respective shares under the central planassistance. The state has been trying hard to be included in the group of special category states but so far 40 success has been achieved in this regard. However, for Rajasthan it should be remembered that, it has been included in this regard. However, for Rajathan it should be remembered that, it has been included in the category of BIMARU states, along with Bihar, MP and UP, due to some weak demographic factors like high growth rates of population, high birth rates, high infant mortality rates, low literacy rates, particularly for femals, low marriage age for girls, etc., as per the viewpoint of the famous demographer, Dr. Ashish Bose. The stae is trying hard to come out of the category of

7 23 BIMARU states. Improvements have taken place in some of the aforesaid demographic indicators as we shall see in the relevant chapters, but more sustained efforts are needed in this direction to achieve the desired goal. In this chapter we would analyses from the point of view of population, area, agriculture, industry, infrastructure etc. We would compare the relative position of Rajasthan with some states also. The position of Rajasthan with some states also. Rajasthan state, in its present form, come into existence as a conglomeration of 19 princely states and 3 chiefships which varied in size, administrative efficiency and socio-economic development at the time of the formation of the state. At present Rajasthan in divided into 7 Divisions, 33 districts which are further divided into 244 tehsils, 184 municipalities (total no. of ULBs, including 5 Nagar Nigams), 249 Panchayat 1 Samities, 9,175 village panchayats and 41,353 revenue villages. Pratapgarh district was the latest addition in the category of districts in the state. With as are of 3.42 lakh sq. kilometes, Rajasthan is now the largest state in the country, after the bifurcation of Chattisgarh from the state of Madhya Pradesh. As per the census of 2011, the population of the state was 6.86 crore. It has a long international frontier with Pakistan of 1040 kms. (Annual Plan, Rajasthan, , p.1.1), and is adjacent to the staes of Punjab, Haryana, 1 SOME FACTS ABOUT Rajasthan august 2011 PPT-8

8 24 UP, MP and Gujarat. Aravalli Hill ranges run from south-west to north-east through the heart of the state. To the west and the north west of these hills, there is a region, which comprises 11 districts. It covers about 61 per cent of the total area of the state, and is widely known as the Great Indian Desert-the Thar. The state accounts for 2.08 lakh sq. kilometers out of the total 2.40 lakh sq. kms. of hot Deseret area in the country. Item Year Rajasthan India Rajasthan s Share in india or other comments 1. Population crore % 2. Area lakh sq. km 3. Decadel growth rate of population 4. Total Literacy rate (aged 7 years and above ) 5. Density ( Population per sq. km 6. Proportion of SC population 7. Proportion of ST population 8. Area under food grains ( sq. km lakh sq. km ( sq. km.) 10.4% ( first place in india) 21.44% 17.64% More than india ( about 3.80 percentage points ) % Less than india ( About 7% points) Less than 181 points as campared to india % 16.2% Slightly more than in India % 8.2% Much more than india final) 13.23( Million hectares Million Hectares) 10.9% 9. No. of lakh 82 lakh 3.4%

9 25 employment in reporting factories 10. Perhectare Consumption of NPK fertilser s (in kg) 11. Average size of holdings 12. Poverty ratio ( No. of poor as a ratio of population ) 13. Per capita consumption of electricity ( utilized and non utilized ) 14. Road length (Per 100sq. km. area ) 15. Electrification of villages 16. Per capita income (at prices ) A few major indicators of Rajasthan economy vis-à-vis Indian economy are given below. Sector wise details would follow later: % of Indian level (hectares) 1.25( hectares) About 2.75 times that of india ( mixed recall period ( MRP) method 34.4% ( New estimate of Tendulkar committee) Source : Statistical Outline of India (Tata Services Ltd.), December 2010, Economic Survey (GOI), and Economic Review (GOR). 37.2% Less than the national averate (kwh) (kwh) Alittle more than the national average (km) (km) About half of national average 31 mar % 81.3% Less than the national average About 70% of national average

10 26 The aforesaid table shown that the annual growth rate of population is higher in Rajasthan as compared to India as a whole. The population of SC and ST population is also higher in Rajasthan as compared to the national average. The state is lagging far behind in industrial development and infrastructural development. But the average size of the operational holding in the state is higher than the national average. The state has to march forward at a faster speed on the path of development in years to come. Now, we shall analyse the position of Rajasthan in Indian economy in relation to different sectors of the economy is sufficient details. 2.4 POSITION OF RAJASTHAN IN INDIAN ECONOMY i. Position of Rajasthan in relation to population As mentioned earlier, population of Rajasthan was 6.86 crore in 2011, which was 5.67 per cent of the total population of India in that year. This ratio was 5.5 per cent in Thus, there has been a slight increase in the share of Rajasthan in the total population of India. During , the population of india increased by per cent, while that of Rajasthan by per cent. Thus, the growth rate in th population of Rajasthan dropped by about 7 percentage points during , as compared to the period But even then during ,

11 27 ii. population increased at a faster rate in Rajasthan as compared to India, which is a cause of real worry. Uttar Pradesh had per cent share in th total population of India in 2011 and occupied first rank in this regard. Rajasthan with a share of 5.67 per cent in the total population of India occupied eighth place in the descending order of percentage share in the total population of India. Sex Ratio Sex ratio indicates the number of females per 1,000 males. It was 926 in 2011 for Rajasthan. In 2001 it was 921. Thus, there has been an increase in the sex ratio by 5 points in 2011 as campared to Sex ratio was 940 in Inida in 2011, which was 14 points higher than Rajasthan. Sex ratio for some other states in 2011 was as follows: India 940 Kerala 1084 MP 930 Punjab 893 UP 908 Rajasthan 926 Thus, the sex ratio in Rajasthan was much lower than that of kerala in 2011; but it was higher than Punjab and UP. In kerala the number of females was higher than that of males. It was 1084 in 2011.

12 28 iii. iv. Density of Population The number of people per square kilometer is called population density. For 2011, it was as follows ( final data ): India 382 Rajasthan 201 UP 828 Kerala 859 Bihar 1102 Thus, the density of population is much lower in Rajasthan as compared to india. In 2001, the density of population in Rajasthan was 165 only. Thus, it has increased in Literacy Rate Those who can read and write an ordinary letter are called literates. Now the literacy rate is calculated for persons with age of 7 or more years. The following table gives the literacy rate for 2011: In percentage All Persons Male Female Rajasthan India Kerala Bihar In female literacy rate, Rajasthan occupies a lower place even in 2011 it was per cent in Rajasthan. The total literacy

13 29 rate in Rajasthan per cent which lower than per cent for India. It must be noted that the female literacy rate in rural areas of some districts of Rajasthan was really very dismal and disappointing. For example in Banswara district, rural female literacy rate was per cent only, which was the minimum in This is a shocking state of affairs and presents a challenging situation for the future. More serious and sustained attention needs to be given to increase rural female literacy rate in Rajasthan in general, and for the most backward districts in particular. 2.5 Position of Rajasthan in Relation to Area As stated earlier, at present Rajasthan is the largest state in Inida from the point of view of area. The area of Rajasthan was about 3.42 lakh square kilometers, which was about per cent of the total area of all the state. The share of some other states and their rank in India are shown in the following table: 2 State % Share in total Rank in the Area of All States State of India Maharashtra Andhra Pradesh Gujarat Haryana Uttar Pradesh Economic Review , State wise important Economic Indicators (Table 28)

14 30 Thus with 10.4 per cent share in area, Rajasthan occupied first place in terms of area in India. Gujarat had about 6 per cent area and uttar Pradesh had about 7.3 per cent. Due to higher share in area, Rajasthan has been pleading for including area as a criterion to be included for the devolution of transfers of tax revenues from the centre to the state. The thirteenth finance commission ( ) has given weightage of 10 per cent to area. There is another important feature of the area in Rajasthan. As 61 per cent area is spread over 11 desert districts of the state with 40 per cent population in them, the state has to face vagaries of nature in terms of droughts and famines quite frequently. Relief works have to be organized over large areas under these conditions. Expenditure on infrastructural activities is larger under such difficult conditions of terrain etc. Thus, the geographical area of Rajasthan has wider implications for the economy of the state. 2.6 Position of Rajasthan in relation to Agriculture (i) Pattern of Land Utilisation there is a lot of difference in the pattern of land utilization in Rajasthan and in the country as a whole. In gross cropped area ( net cropped area+ area sown more than once)in Rajasthan was 64.8 per cent ot the total geographical area in the state. The position of Rajasthan has been regarded as stisfactroy from the point of view of gross cropped are in the country. In gross cropped area had reached a

15 31 lower level of per cent of the total geographical area in the state. It fluctuates from year to year due to uncertain rainfall conditions. (ii) Average Size of Operational Holdings In , the average size of operational holdings was 3.38 hectares in Rajasthan, while it was only 1.25 hectares for the country as a whole. Thus, the average size of operational holdings is quite high in Rajasthan. It had second place amongst 17 sates of India. While the first place went to Punjab, where the average size of operational holdings was 3.95 hectares. The Position for some other states was as follows in :- (In hectares) Gujarat 2.20 MP 2.02 UP 0.80 West Bengal 0.79 Thus, the average size of operational holdings in UP and west Bengal has sunk below one hectare, while that of Rajasthan is much higher, at 3.38 hectares. (iii) Irrigation, use of Fertillisers, etc. - In , gross irrigated area as a ratio of gross cropped area was per cent in Rajsthan, while it was about 42.9 per cent in india in Thus, there is scarcity of irrigation facilities in the state.

16 32 Ultimately irrigation potential in Rajasthan is 52 Lakh hectares, while for india it is crore hectares. Thus it is 4.5 per cent of the country as a whole. The per hectare consumption of fertilisers is very low in Rajasthan. In it was about kgs, while it was kgs in India. Thus, it was about 1/3 rd of the country as a whole. It was kgs in Punjab, which was the highest in the country. (iv) Production of Main Crops- Rajasthan has emerged as a leading producer of oilseeds in recent years. The production of nine oilseeds was very high in Rajasthan in the whole country. The state has become a leading producer of rapeseed and mustard in the country. In , production was lakh tones, while it was 64 lakh tones in the entire country. In some other crops, its share in national output was as follows: Share of Rajasthan in Agricultural Production in Total food grains 7.1 Wheat 9.0 Oilseeds 18.4 Pulses 12.4 Cotton 3.1 Thus, the state had a greater share in the output of oilseeds and pulses( Particularly gram) in the country. Its position in the output of sugarcane was very low. It was rather negligible. The production of foodgrains varies sharply from year to year. For example, it was lakh tones in , which was 5.7

17 33 per cent of the whole country. Crop output fluctuations cause serious problem for the economy of Rajasthan. However, the output of oilseeds has shown a sharp rise in recent years. 2.7 industrial position of Rajasthan in the National Economy (i) Share in gross Domestic Product and Labor force If we include manufacturing ( registered and unregistered), Construction, electricity, gas and water supply under the industrial sector, then the share of industries in GDP in for Rajasthan was 29.7 per cent at prices; while it was 25.8 per cent for India at prices. During this period, for construction alone, the share was 12 per cent for the state of Rajasthan. Rajasthan will have to raise its share in manufacturing from its present low level of about per cent to a somewhat higher level by industrializing the state at a faster rate in future. Manufacturing includes registered as well as unregistered sectors. Both need to be developed at a faster rate. More about it will be discussed under industrial growth of Rajasthan. (ii) position of the Factory Sector- The position of the factory sector in was as follows in Rajasthan and some other states in the national economy: Rajasthan Number of reporting factories 6337 Invested capital (rs. Crore) Number of Persons engaged ( in lakh) 3.70 Net valueadded (NVA) by manufacture (Rs. Crore) Gujarat Maharashtra

18 34 All India Share of Rajasthan In all India (%) Source : AS CSO, March Thus, in number of reporting factories, Rajasthan s share was 4.3 per cent, while in other indicators such as invested capital, it was about 2.7 per cent, and in the number of persons engaged in them and net value added by manufacture (Value of output value of input) it was about 3.5 per cent and 2.5 per cent respectively in These indicators show that in the factory sector Rajasthan is industrially backward at present. Gujarat is industrially more advanced than Rajasthan. In , the number of reporting factors was 15,107 in Gujarat while it was 6,337 only in Rajasthan. The amount of invested capital and net value-added by manufacture was much higher in Gujarat and Maharashtra as compared to Rajasthan. Thus, Rajasthan is industrially lagging behind other states so far as the factory-sector is concerned. But Rajasthan occupies a leading position so far as the output of handicrafts, handlooms gems & jewellery, carpets and other cottage and household industries are concerned. The exports of these products from the state help in earning foreign exchange for the country. More attention should be given to them in future so that employment income and foreign exchange earning may be

19 35 increased to a substantial extent from this sector. The factory sector needs to be developed in the present decade at a rapid rate. 2.8 Social-Economic Infrastructure (i) Electricity - At the end of March 2010, the installed capacity for power generation in Rajasthan was MW, which was quite inadequate, looking to the needs of the state. The per capita consumption of electricity was 747 kwh in Rajasthan in as compared to the national average of kwh. Among 17 states, Rajasthan occupied 11 th rank in term of per capita consumption of electricity. Punjab with 1553 kwh, occupied the first position in thisrespect. In March 2009, while Gujarat, Haryana. Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamilnadu, etc. had achieved 100 per cent level in electrification of villages, Rajasthan had reached a level of above 91.6 per cent by that time. (ii) Roads- As stated in the beginning of the chapter, by the end of the road mileage was km. per 100 sq. km in Rajasthan. The national average was about km. Thus, the state is backward in the development of roads at present. Rajasthan has to go a long way to improve the position in this regard.

20 36 (iii) Railways- As on 31 March 2008 the railway mileage per 1,000 sq. km. area was kms. for Rajasthan, which was less than the national average. The railway milage was higher in states like Punjab and West Bengal. This shows the backwardness of Rajasthan in the development of railways so far. But more recently, a lot of progress has been made in the conversion of railway track from meter gauge to broad gauge, which has opened up new avenues for the economic development of the state for the future. (iv) Education- We have shown earlier that the literacy level in Rajasthan is very poor at present. In 2011, there were 67.1 per cent literate persons in the state as compared to 74.0 per cent in the entire country. The state has to improve its literacy rate further in future. The position of Gross Enrolment Ratio in classes I-V and VI-VIII for Rajasthan and India is shown in the following table for : 3 Rajasthan All India Primary (I-V) Boys Girls Total Upper Primary (VI-VIII) (11-13 years) Boys Girls Total Economic Survey Survey GO1, P.A.- 120

21 The above table shows that the enrolment ration for girls in Rajasthan is less as compared to India at the upper primary level. The position with regard to the enrolment of boys is better in Rajasthan as compared to the national level. But the problem of dropouts is serious at the primary level and needs to be tackled in the near future. Moreover, the gross enrolment ratios in the State for SC and ST people are much lower than the overall averages as shown in the above table. (V)Per Capital Income- Finally, we may have a look at the per capita income or Rajasthan in relation to the per capital income in India. At constant prices of , the per capita income of Rajasthan was Rs. 23,653 for while it was about Rs. 33,731 for the entire country (as shown in the table, earlier). Thus, the per capita income level in much less in Rajasthan as compared to India. But there is ample potential for economic development in Rajasthan, which can help in increasing the per capita real income of the state in Future. 2.9 MAIN FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR SLOW ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF RAJASTHAN The aforesaid discussion indicates that Rajasthan economy has been lagging behind Indian economy in various sectors ; such as agriculture, industry, Infrastructure-both economic

22 38 and social, etc. We must analyse the factors which have been responsible for this state of affairs so that the state may bridge up its gap with the national economy in future by adopting suitable policy measures in this regard. 1 Economic Base of Rajasthan was Very Weak at the start of Planning in 1951 Economic position of Rajasthan was very dismal in the initial stages of planning. In , the installed capacity of power was only 13 MW, gross irrigated area as a ratio of gross cropped area was only 12 per cent, state had electricity in 42 places only and the road mileage was 17,399 kms only. Industrial development was not possible due to lack of roads, water supply and electricity generation. There was lack of social services as well, and educational and medical facilities were lagging far behind the national average in different parts of the state. In , in the age group of 6-11 years, the percentage of school going children was 16.6 per cent,while in the age group of years it was 5.4 per cent only. The number of beds in hospitals for patients was 5,720, which was quite inadequate for the purpose. With such low economic base, it was not possible to make up the gaps in a short period of time. However, during the plan-period significant improvements have

23 39 been made in several directions, which would be discussed as we proceed further in our study in this book. 2 Adverse Geographical and Physical Conditions As mentioned earlier, the state has desert area in 61 per cent of the geographical area of the state, which is frequently visited by famines and droughts. The surface water resources of the state constitute 1 per cent of the total surface water resources of the entire country. The per capita expenditure on making basic services available to the people in backward and remote areas is quite high. Due to lack of adequate funds, development is adversely affected. Monsoon is uncertain in India, but it is more so in Rajasthan. It leads to drastic fluctuations in agricultural output in the state, more particularly in the output of khariff foodgrains, which causes hardship to the people from time to time. 3 High Growth Rate of Population The growth rate of population in Rajasthan during was per cent and in it was 21.4 per cent. These growth rates are higher than the national averages for the respective periods. The per capita income and per capita availability of goods and services have been adversely affected due to this single factor.

24 40 There is also some correlation between high population growth rate and social backwardness of the state. 4 Problems Related with Groundwater in the State Due to droughts water-table have been receding continuously in the state. In some areas, water is brackish and unfit for human and cattle consumption, and even for agricultural purposes. People, particularly women-folk, have to walk a long distance to fetch potable water in some parts of the state. Due to excess use of groundwater in recent years, some parts of the state may face a situation of severe water-famine in the near future. 5 Social Backwardness In 2001, the proportion of SC people in the state was 17.2 per cent and that of ST people it was 12.6 per cent. With other backward class people, the proportion of socially backward people in the population is likely to exceed 30 per cent, which poses several problems for the planners. Massive investments are needed to remove the social and economic backwardness of these communities. There are organizational problems too in implementing the programmes for the upliftment of these people. 6 Lack of Financial Resources Although a lot of expenditure has been incurred during the plan-period for making improvements in various

25 41 sectors of the economy, particularly in sectors like power, irrigation and social services; yet further planned development is constrained due to financial difficulties. The total debt burden on the state at the end of March 2011 was a sum of Rs. 98,881 crore, which is likely to cross the level of Rs. One lakh crore by the end of March 2012, this has increased interest burden on the state. We shall study in the chapter on State Finances that revenue deficits and fiscal deficits were high in earlier years, there were revenue surpluses during and But again revenue deficits and fiscal deficits started rising from onwards. The state tried to improve its fiscal situation under Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act of It has to reframe the FRBM Act, again in the light of the changing fiscal position of the State. 7 Poor Implementation of Plans Although the Planning Department has been preparing five year plans and annual plans in the state, yet high level technical and academic work was not carried out on state planning process in the past. Moreover, decentralized planning could not take root in the state, and there could not be proper coordination between local resources, local manpower and local requirements of the people. With the setting up of New Panchyati Raj

26 42 Institutions after the enactment of 73 rd constitutional Amendment ACT in the State, a new situation during , a new situation emerged in the state for better planning at the grass-roots level. Time has come to give a new orientation to the entire planning process in terms of need-based local planning in the state. Planning at the state-level need a new face-lift in terms of planformulation, plan-implementation and plan-evaluation. The state has to tackle issues related with: (I) Power development in the private sector; (II) Industrial development of backward regions; (III) Agricultural development by spreading the use of drip-irrigation and sprinkler-irrigation, and watershed development as well as wasteland development programmes; (IV) Rapid development of mineral resources, roads and cattle-wealth; and (V) Increasing literacy rate, particularly in rural areas for the women-folk. The production and productivity need to be improved in all the sectors of the economy so that problems of poverty, unemployment and inequality may be tackled more effectively during the next few decades in Rajasthan. The state possesses potential for providing full employment to its people in future. With large external assistance, particularly from the World Bank

27 43 for large project in agricultural and other sectors the state can hope to build a bright future for itself, and thereby help in accelerating the economic growth of the entire country SUMMING UP The growth rate of population in Rajasthan during was per cent, which should be reduced to less than 25 per cent in the near future. For this couple protection rate (CPR) should be increased from the effective level of 46.4 per cent as on 31 st March 2007 (as state earlier) to a much higher level in future. We should reduce infant mortality rate and birth rate in years to come. The literacy rate, particularly in the case of rural females, should be increased and mean-age at marriage for girls should be raised from about years to about 21 years. The birth rate in Rajasthan was 27.2 per thousand in 2009 which should be reduced to 20 per thousand in the next few years. This level is not beyond our reach because it has already been achieved in Karnataka (19.8 years), AP (18.4 years), WB (17.5 years) and Maharashtra (17.9 years), in Raj Laxmi Bond Scheme and Vikalp Scheme should be implemented quite vigorously to achieve success in the field of family planning in the state. They should be made more popular through the NGOs, private agency participation and people s participation in future. They should be run as programmes not merely to control child-births, but also as programmes for improving the welfare, health and happiness of the common people in Rajasthan.