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Comparative Advantage

Bio-Diversity


Bihar, fundamentally an agrarian economy, has a large agricultural and animal production base offering abundant supply of raw material to be processed for human consumption. Despite these natural advantages, the level of food processing is very low and there is scope to improve the food processing levels to meet the increasing requirements of the state‘s growing population, while at the same time offering a sustainable consumption market. Further, the rising income and changing life style in the cities as well as rural Bihar is changing the consumption demand towards processed food. Therefore, the state offers a substantial opportunity for the food processing industry and is expected to play a leading role in the industrialization drive of this state.

  Surplus         Deficit      The map highlights the top three surplus and deficit Fruits & Vegetables for the state.

  Production ( in Lakh MT)Production: Highlights the top five Fruits & Vegetables produced in the state

Sources: National Sample Survey Office, National Horticulture Board, State Government Portals


Connectivity

Bihar has a unique location specific advantage because of its proximity to the vast markets of eastern and northern India, access to ports such as Kolkata and Haldia and to raw material sources and mineral reserves from the neighboring states. Bihar is primarily an agrarian state and is one of the largest producers of vegetables and fruits in India. Bihar is endowed with water resources – both ground and surface water– as it receives an average rainfall of 1009 mm each year. Ganga is the main river that flows through the state, joined by tributaries that originate in the Himalayas. Some of the other major rivers are Saryu, Gandak, Budhi Gandak, Bagmati, Kamla and Mahananda.

The total length of the State Highways (SH) is 4253 km (in 2015) and approximately 65% of these highways are double-lane roads. The National Highways, on the other hand, have a strategic significance in the state's economic development as they connect Bihar with other states. The total length of National Highways in the state is 4595 km (as of 2015) and efforts are being made to further increase the network at a rapid pace.

Golden Quadrilateral Highway that passes through Bihar is in close proximity to some of the districts, viz. Kaimur, Sasaram, Aurangabad Gaya & Patna. These districts are well connected to this highway via branch roads. This serves as a high logistical advantage in catering to the markets within as well as in the adjoining states of Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Orissa, and Jharkhand. It provides connectivity to major industrial, agricultural, and cultural centers of India. The length of Golden Quadrilateral Highway that passes through the State, i.e. 204 km, has been widened.

Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor passes through the state and would connect Bihar with West Bengal, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab and is expected to be immensely beneficial for industries in the state. It would facilitate the transport of finished products to ports in Bay of Bengal in lesser time; thereby, bringing down the transportation cost, significantly.

Road Network and Road Density in Major State of India (As on March,2014)

Sl. State Road Network (KM)
NH SH Other Total
1.

Maharashtra

6249

39588

562853

608690

2.

Uttar Pradesh

7986

7544

381694

397224

3.

West Bengal

2908

3893

306949

313750

4.

Karnataka

6177

20774

280233

313184

5.

Odisha

4550

5125

273490

283165

6.

Madhya Pradesh

5116

10934

263946

279996

7.

Tamil Nadu

4975

11594

237636

254205

8.

Rajasthan

7646

11292

222305

241243

9.

Bihar

4467

4389

200902

209758

10.

Kerala

1700

4341

187419

193460

11.

Gujarat

4694

18017

156352

179063

12.

Andhra Pradesh

6590

6480

165026

178096

13.

Punjab

1699

1315

101146

104160

14.

Chhattisgarh

3031

5080

86469

94580

15.

Haryana

2050

2098

38537

42685

16.

Jharkhand

2968

1596

36694

41258

 

All-India

72806

154060

3501651

3734517

Source: Basic Road Statistics of India, 2013-14 and 2014-15, GoI