Analyzing Infrastructure for Improving Trade Performance-an Empirical Analysis

Infrastructure is an architecture of facilities which enables smooth flow of goods and services to the public. Thus they act as facilitators for socio-economic activities rather than directly producing goods or services. Infrastructure includes roads, bridges, railways, and similar public works which boost economic activities in a country. In the context of India, infrastructure investments are highly difficult to be projected due to the geo-physical status of the country. The Country has ports, railways and roads across different physical states like hilly regions of North and North East, Coastal regions of South with low draft, coastal regions of West like Maharashtra and Gujarat. Hence, the planned development of the Infrastructure of the country depends upon the State level requirements, plans and execution. It is a matter of fact that a state's prosperity depends largely on its Infrastructure and a good Infrastructure makes a state richer and richer through increasing trades. In this paper an attempt is made to analyze the infrastructure of a Central Indian State-Madhya Pradesh through Infrastructure Index which highlights the imbalances and areas for growth the smoothen the flow of trade.