Inter-industry tables for Gujarat: methodology and estimates

Abstract

Regional Input-Output tables compatible with the national input-output table can play a crucial role in formulating realistic regional plans and also in ensuring that the spatial dimension is properly incorporated into the national planning model in a large sized multi-region economy like India. The regional I/O table captures the basic differences between the state economy and the national economy in terms of the production structure and technology. An attempt has been made in the present paper to construct the input-output table for Gujarat compatible and consistent with the national I/O table for 1984-85, which formed the basis for the national 7th Five Year Plan. Accordingly, the I/O table prepared for Gujarat consists of 50 sectors and represents commodity flows at current (1984-85) prices. Both the input-output coefficient matrix as well as the input transactions matrix have been presented in the paper. There are two alternative methods for constructing regional I/O tables: The survey-based method and the Non-survey based method. The latter involves regionalising the national I/O matrix. The paper presents both sets of estimates for Gujarat for the year 1984-85. A detailed comparison of the results indicates that if the purpose of constructing regional I/O table is to capture sector-activity-specific differences in the regional technology, the survey-based method should be given priority over the non-survey based method, although the former involves much greater time and effort.