Resource information
Uttar Pradesh (UP) is one of the most
densely populated states in India with high rates of
poverty. The state is a major contributor to the
agricultural staples of the country and, at present, a large
percentage of the state s labor force is engaged in
low-productivity agricultural activities with the
agricultural sector employing 60 percent of all formal
workers at the state level. The purpose of this report is to
present a range of options for regional development in UP by
leveraging spatial development patterns along the Eastern
Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC). The report reflects the
Government of India (GoI)-World Bank s India country
partnership strategy that promotes balanced regional growth.
The report focuses on identifying potential sub regions for
logistic hubs and industrial development in the UP districts
and develops an economic potential index (EPI) to assess the
likely impacts of investments. Using this methodology, four
sub-regions have been identified for economic development,
namely: (i) Auraiya-Kanpur; (ii) Ghaziabad-Gautam Buddha
Nagar; (iii) Aligarh-Hathras-Firozabad-Agra; and (iv)
Allahabad-Varanasi. This report is part of a three-phase
examination of potential economic development along the
EDFC. The report presents the results of economic modeling
to determine the best locations in the state to concentrate
logistics hubs, industrial estates, and infrastructure
investments. The modeling approach assesses six
characteristics in each district associated with variations
in economic productivity, namely: (i) market accessibility;
(ii) industrial diversity; (iii) commodity flow; (iv) per
capita industrial investment; (v) agricultural
specialization; and (vi) poor social conditions. The report
has eight sections, namely: section one is introduction;
section two gives overview of UP; section three presents
UP s economy and infrastructure: a synopsis; section four
gives UP s district economies and economic potential index:
key factors; section five presents criteria for locating
logistics and industrial hubs within promising sub-regions
in UP; section six focuses on moving towards implementation;
section seven gives conclusion; and section eight presents annexes.
