Uttar Pradesh: India's Most Populous State

The economy of India's most populous state, its challenges of low income per person and its recent push for infrastructure and investment.

Uttar Pradesh, in northern India, has over 200 million people, making it more populous than all but a handful of countries. Its economic performance matters greatly for India as a whole.

Size versus income

Uttar Pradesh has one of India’s largest state economies in total size, but its income per person has been well below the national average, reflecting its very large population. Agriculture employs a large share of workers, and the state is India’s largest producer of sugarcane and wheat and a major milk producer.

Challenges

Low income per person and high poverty historically.
Health and education indicators below national averages in many areas.
Large informal and agricultural workforce.
Out-migration: millions of workers from Uttar Pradesh work in other states.
Regional differences: western Uttar Pradesh, near Delhi, is more prosperous than eastern regions.

Recent developments

In recent years, Uttar Pradesh has invested heavily in:

Expressways, such as the Purvanchal and Bundelkhand expressways and the Ganga Expressway.
Airports, including the Noida International Airport at Jewar.
Industrial corridors and investor summits.
Electronics manufacturing, with Noida emerging as a major hub for mobile phone manufacturing.
Tourism, including religious tourism to Ayodhya, Varanasi and Prayagraj.

Why it matters

Because Uttar Pradesh is so large, improvements in its health, education and incomes have a big effect on India’s national averages and progress toward development goals.

Noida's phone factories

Noida, on the edge of Delhi in Uttar Pradesh, has become one of India's largest mobile phone manufacturing hubs, with factories run by Samsung and many other companies. Proximity to Delhi, industrial land and government incentives helped attract investment, creating jobs and exports.

Thinking a large economy means a rich state

Uttar Pradesh's total economy is large because it has so many people, but income per person, the better measure of living standards, remains below the national average.

Key takeaways

Uttar Pradesh has over 200 million people, more than most countries.
Its total economy is large, but income per person is below the national average.
Agriculture, out-migration and regional differences shape its economy.
Expressways, airports, electronics manufacturing and tourism are recent growth drivers.