ICS Analysis

This paper studies the economic model of Guizhou, a south western province in China, and its use of the Yangtze River system to fuel economic growth. Can similar policies be applied to Odisha in India? The assumption underlying this study is that Guizhou and Odisha are comparable in several ways, be it the resource-abundant nature of the provinces, the lack of transport infrastructure, or the many economic problems that plague both the provinces. Guizhou though has managed to lift its GDP growth in recent years. In 2016, it registered an astonishing 10.5% growth far surpassing the overall growth rate of China. On the other hand, even though Odisha holds significant potential when it comes to economic growth, it registered relatively moderate growth at 7.94%. Thus, it would be useful to understand the factors that propelled Guizhou to a higher economic growth that has not been seen in the case of Odisha yet.

The first part of the paper will focus on Guizhou and the policies it has implemented to ensure higher growth rate. Here, the goal will be to try to understand the role of the Yangtze River in fuelling the growth in the province. This section shows how the Yangtze River has been used as a source of connectivity in the province and the positive role it is playing to bring investment into the state. The second part of the paper will focus on the comparison of Guizhou with Odisha and argue in favour of using River Mahanadi for economic development along the lines of Guizhou’s use of River Yangtze.