Gujarat Again Tops NITI Aayog's Export Preparedness Index, Coastal States Best Performers
The report showcased most coastal states faring well in the index.
Gujarat ranked on top of NITI Aayog's Export Preparedness Index 2021 for the second time in a row.
Maharashtra and Karnataka occupied the second and third spots, followed by Tamil Nadu and Haryana, according to the numbers released on Friday.
The index "assesses the readiness of the states, in terms of their export potential and performance", NITI Aayog said in the report released in partnership with the Institute of Competitiveness.
"The index can be used by states and union territories to benchmark their performance against their peers and analyse potential challenges to develop better policy mechanisms to foster export-led growth at the subnational level," it said.
The report ranks states based on four parameters—policy, business ecosystem, export ecosystem, export performance. There are also 11 sub-pillars including export promotion policy, institutional framework, business environment, infrastructure, transport connectivity, access to finance, export infrastructure, trade support, R&D infrastructure, export diversification and growth orientation.
The report was released by NITI Aayog's Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar. Niti Aayog's CEO Amitabh Kant, Commerce Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam were also part of the event.
The report pointed at three major challenges to India’s export promotion: intra and inter-regional differences in export infrastructure; weak trade support and growth orientation across states; and lack of R&D infrastructure to promote complex and unique exports.
"EPI 2021 will help the states and UTs in a long way to plan and execute sound export-oriented policies for ensuring a conducive export ecosystem, to make maximum utilization of their export potential," said Kumar said.
The report showcased most coastal states faring well in the index.
"There is also a need to work continuously on strengthening our manufacturing and infrastructure ecosystems at the state level to ensure robust growth of exports in the future," Subrahmanyam said.