Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh continue to be at the bottom of the heap in terms of per head income, while people in smaller states like Delhi and Goa pocketed highest average earnings in 2006-07, Assocham said.

Mineral-rich states Jharkhand and Orissa grew at the fastest pace in terms of per capita income due to increased industrial activity, but were still far behind the national average of Rs 20,734 in 2006-07, Assocham said in its study on States' Performance in per capita income.

The study said Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar earned the lowest per capita income with Rs 12,566, Rs 10,637 and Rs 6,610, respectively as the development plans are yet to take off there.

The per head incomes of these three states grew at the slowest rates of 2.9 per cent, 3.1 per cent and 3.7 per cent in that order, the study added.

On an average, Delhiites pocketed highest incomes of Rs 49,172 followed by Goans who earned Rs 47,507 during the year, even though their per head earnings grew at 6.9 per cent and 6 per cent respectively.

Jharkhand, one of the two states witnessing fastest pace of growth in per capita income, has been receiving investment proposals in steel, cement and power sectors, and creating employment opportunities.

The state registered a growth of 16.6 per cent in per capita income, which stood at Rs 14,990 during 2006-07, it said.
Orissa, with a per capita income of Rs 14,795, has seen a rapid rise of 11.5 per cent in income distribution due to the influx of huge capital expenditure by big business houses in the core infrastructure sector of the state.

"Per capita income reflects on the purchasing power and standard of living of the people of each state. For inclusive growth, it is necessary for the states to put in efforts to raise the income attributable to each person," Assocham president Venugopal Dhoot said.

Karnataka, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu continued to be among the rich states on account of huge investment flow, rising employment opportunities and strengthening network of service-based sectors.

Among them, Karnataka topped the chart as the income per person grew by 9.28 per cent at Rs 21,829 for the last fiscal. Gujarat's average income per person rose to Rs 26,543 with a growth of 8.92 per cent while per capita income in Tamil Nadu was recorded at Rs 24,308 with a rise of 8.46 per cent in it.

However, Chhattisgarh, which is grappling with a growing naxal violence, witnessed 8.8 per cent growth in its average income to Rs 16,365.

In its study, Assocham expressed concern over the per capita income of the states which grew below the national average of 8.4 per cent. The average national income grew to Rs 22,483 in 2006-07 fiscal from Rs 20,734 during the previous financial year, it said.

Maharashtra, a major recipient of foreign and domestic investment, witnessed a healthy growth rate of 7.3 per cent with per capita income of 29,085. Punjab had a growth of 2.9 per cent in its per head income at Rs 28,605.