This book by the Asia Competitiveness Institute (ACI) presents the inaugural regional competitiveness analysis for the five regions of India as a basis for the Master Plan on Strategic Regional Economic Development using regional classifications as defined by the Confederation of Indian Industry. Potential strategic clusters are identified for intra-regional collaboration given each region's unique strengths and resource endowments to facilitate accelerated economic growth and development which is balanced, fair and sustainable. The book also presents an update of ACI's annual competitiveness analysis of India's 35 states and federal territories. States and federal territories are ranked by ACI's comprehensive methodology by employing 75 indicators across four environments. Going beyond the rankings, the what-if policy simulations offer states and federal territories relevant policy prescriptions based on their respective strengths and weaknesses. A subset of the competitiveness indicators are then utilised for Geweke Causality Analysis to highlight the impact of strong leadership on economic development in the states of Bihar and Tamil Nadu.
