Bhubaneswar, Feb. 18: For one of the poorest states in the country, Odisha’s expected economic growth rate for 2012-13 is better than that projected for the country as a whole.

The Indian economy is projected to grow by 6.9 per cent during the current financial year according to a World Bank report titled Global Economic Prospects while Odisha’s economy is expected to take a leap with an anticipated growth rate of 9.14 per cent in 2012-13.

The state’s economic survey, 2012-13, released today ahead of the state budget, attributes the growth to stellar performances in agriculture and service sectors. The growth rate in agriculture is estimated to be 16.11 per cent.

Painting a rosy picture of the economy, the survey says the bounce back in overall growth rate of Odisha’s gross state domestic product in 2012-13 could overcome the relatively sluggish growth of the state’s economy during 2011-12. The slowdown of economic growth in 2011-12 was mainly because of the adverse growth rates of agriculture and mining sectors.

The mining sector, following a government crackdown in the wake of a scam that surfaced in 2009, was hit particularly hard. This is evident from the fact that while the value of minerals mined in the state went up from Rs 15,317 crore in 2009-10 to Rs 28,287 crore in 2010-11, the rise next year was comparatively minuscule. The total value of extracted minerals was only Rs 30,204 crore in 2011-12.

The state experienced the natural shock of a severe drought in 2011-12 with shortfall in average rainfall and recorded the lowest crop production since 2004-05 during this period. The negative growth rate of agriculture production in 2011-12 also adversely affected the non-farm activities in the state.

The survey says the industry sector, too, has been badly hit over the years. According to the advanced estimates for 2012-13, the share of the industry in the economy is only 24.23 per cent as against 25.78 per cent for 2011-12. The document, however, is silent over the contribution of mega industrial projects such as Posco and ArcelorMittal to the economy.

Though the poverty has declined in the state, it is comparatively high in southern and northern regions as well as among the scheduled caste and scheduled tribe communities, reflecting the regional and social disparities.

The dynamics of the state’s economy has changed over the years. The share of service sector in the economy has been growing consistently while the agriculture sector has shown signs of being volatile. In 2012-13, the share of the service sector is expected to be 58.28 per cent while that of the industry sector, 24.23 per cent, and agriculture sector, 17.49 per cent.

However, the Opposition disputed the claims of rising the per capita income. The real per capita income of Odisha is estimated at Rs 25,584 for 2012-13 with a noticeable growth rate of 6.01 per cent over 2011-12 when the per capita income was Rs 24,134.

But, leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh termed it as jugglery of figures. “There has been no real improvement in the living standard of people,” he said. Government chief whip Pravat Tripathy, however, asserted that the figures showed a robust economy.