Industrial Development & Economic Growth in Kerala

Kerala is known as God’s own country. It is one of the few states to have marketed its natural beauty successfully to the leisure tourism sector. The state’s unique heritage and cultural diversity have helped attract tourists from the world over. Its strategic location on the trans-national trade corridor, rich natural resources, and simple and transparent procedures make the state favorably suited for investments in major sectors such as tourism, IT/ITeS, manufacturing and mining.

Kerala holds second rank in the Investment Climate Index followed by Karnataka, as per a policy research working paper by the World Bank. The state stands second due to its world-class infrastructure and well-trained human resource pool. Kerala's traditional industries include handloom, cashew, coir and handicrafts.

Kerala is a leading agricultural state in the country and the largest producer of rubber, pepper, coconut and coir. As per budget 2018-19, Government of Kerala proposed an outlay of US$ 1,131.75 million for the Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Co-operation sector.

It has the first international transshipment terminal in India, having a design capacity of around 4 million TEUs and providing better connectivity between Kerala and other ports in India.

The state’s GSDP recorded a CAGR of 11.13 per cent between 2011-12 and 2016-17.

Total exports from the state stood at US$ 7.31 billion during 2017-18. Gold and other precious metal jewellery were the most exported items from Kerala stood at US$ 2,992.93 million which was 40.95 per cent of the total exports.

Under SEZ Act, 2005, Kerala has 29 formally approved SEZs, 25 notified SEZs and 19 exporting SEZs. The state has a techno park in Thiruvananthapuram which has been instrumental in attracting global electronics manufacturers, an info park in Kochi, and a cyber park in Kozhikode. Performance of the key sectors of state is as follows:

• During 2017-18*, fruits and vegetable production in the state stood at 2,493.90 thousand MT and 2,010.78 thousand MT respectively
• During April-July 2018 (E), tea production in Kerala stood at 21.91 million kg. As of April 2018, tea exports from the state were 14.5 thousand tonnes.
• Kerala accounts for 85 per cent of total coir production in India and its coir industry provides employment to around 375,000 people. Export of Coir and Coir products in the state stood at US$ 40.58 million during 2016-17
• As of June 2018, 26 road project works have been completed in the state under PMGSY
• During 2017, 14.67 million domestic tourists and 1.09 million foreign tourists arrived in Kerala.
• The cargo traffic handled by Cochin port was 13.14 million tonnes during 2018 – 19**

Note: * - As per 1st Advance Estimates, ** - Up to August 2018, MT – metric tonnes

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