Is Economic Growth Sustainable? Environmental Quality of Indian States Post 1991

Mukherjee, Sacchidananda and Kathuria, Vinish (2006): Is Economic Growth Sustainable? Environmental Quality of Indian States Post 1991.

Abstract

This study is an attempt to investigate the relationship between environmental quality and per capita NSDP (i.e., Environment Kuznets Curve, EKC) of 14 major Indian States in the light of their very high economic growth in the post-liberalisation period. The analysis involves first ranking the States on the basis of their environmental quality, and then checking the relationship. The analysis captures both temporal and spatial aspects of environmental quality by ranking the States in two time periods – (i) early 1990s (1990 - 1996) and (ii) late 1990s (1997 - 2001). The results indicate that the relationship between environmental quality and per capita NSDP is slanting S-shaped. Except Bihar all other States are on the upward sloping curve of the EKC. The results suggest that the economic growth is mostly at the cost of environmental quality.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Environment and development; economic growth; Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC); Environmental Quality (EQ); liberalisation; India
• Subjects: Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q5 - Environmental Economics > Q56 - Environment and Development ; Environment and Trade ; Sustainability ; Environmental Accounts and Accounting ; Environmental Equity ; Population Growth; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q5 - Environmental Economics > Q53 - Air Pollution ; Water Pollution ; Noise ; Hazardous Waste ; Solid Waste ; Recycling; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q4 - Energy > Q40 - General; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q0 - General > Q01 - Sustainable Development; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O4 - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity > O40 - General; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q2 - Renewable Resources and Conservation > Q20 - General