South Asian countries have shown remarkable progress in ICT penetration and became the fastest growing countries in the region. This paper empirically investigates the impact of ICT penetration on economic growth of four South Asian economies (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka) for the period from 1995 to 2016. We used the three core ICT indicators (i.e. fixed-phone subscribers, mobile-phone subscribers, and internet users) individually and in composite index form developed through Principal Component Analysis (PCA). To estimate the long run relationship, study used the multiple cointegration tests like panel cointegration and Fully Modified Ordinary Least Square (FMOLS) technique and Panel VECM model particularly to investigate the short-run dynamics. Study finds that, ICT penetration in both forms (i.e. ICT composite index and its individual form) have a long run positive relationship with the economic growth of South Asian economies, supporting the leapfrogging hypothesis. We also find that, internet users penetration has more pronounced effects on economic growth followed by mobile-phone subscribers' penetration and fixed-phone subscribers’ penetration, respectively. It suggests that if sampled countries seek to enhance their economic growth in the long run, they should implement particular policies that facilitate ICT with keen focus on internet usage.

南亚国家在信息通信技术普及方面取得了显着进步，成为该地区增长最快的国家。本文实证研究了 1995 年至 2016 年期间 ICT 普及率对四个南亚经济体（印度、巴基斯坦、孟加拉国和斯里兰卡）经济增长的影响。我们使用了三个核心 ICT 指标（即固定电话用户、移动电话用户和互联网用户）单独和通过主成分分析（PCA）开发的复合指数形式。为了估计长期关系，研究使用了多重协整检验，如面板协整和完全修正的普通最小二乘 (FMOLS) 技术和面板 VECM 模型，特别是研究短期动态。研究发现，两种形式的 ICT 渗透（即 ICT 综合指数及其个体形式）与南亚经济体的经济增长长期呈正相关，支持跨越式假设。我们还发现，互联网用户渗透率对经济增长的影响更为明显，其次是手机用户渗透率和固定电话用户渗透率。它表明，如果抽样国家寻求从长远来看促进其经济增长，它们应实施促进 ICT 的特定政策，并重点关注互联网的使用。分别为普及率和固定电话用户普及率。它表明，如果抽样国家寻求从长远来看促进其经济增长，它们应实施促进 ICT 的特定政策，并重点关注互联网的使用。分别为普及率和固定电话用户普及率。它表明，如果抽样国家寻求从长远来看促进其经济增长，它们应实施促进 ICT 的特定政策，并重点关注互联网的使用。