Band 8+: The bar chart below shows the sector contributions to India’s gross domestic product from 1960 to 2000. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The chart illustrates the percentage contributions in three different categories, namely, agriculture, industry, and services, between 1960 and 2000.

Overall, the agriculture sector’s contribution to GDP decreased dramatically, whereas the services sector’s contribution increased steadily. Moreover, the industry sector remained largely unchanged over the period.

Looking first at the agriculture and services categories, in 1960, agriculture was by far the highest contributor to India’s GDP, with around 62%. Thereafter, the figure dramatically dropped to its nadir of about 13% in 2000. As a result of this fall, the agriculture sector declined from first to last place. By contrast, the services sector, which accounted for a relatively low part of the GDP contribution of approximately 18%, climbed to more than 60% in 2000.

Turning to the remaining category, the industry sector remained a steady contributor to India’s GDP throughout the period. It grew marginally from about 16% in 1960 to nearly 30% in 1980, then dropped down to only around 12% in 2000.