India is the second most populous country in the world. It is also one of the poorest. From the 1940s to 1980, India’s per capita income grew at an average annual rate of only two per cent. Expansionist economic reforms during the 1980s boosted growth, but also resulted in high inflation and a balance of payments crisis. As a consequence, 1991 saw the announcement of sweeping new changes in economic policy. This volume evaluates the effects of those changes and identifies areas of the Indian economy still in urgent need of reform. The overview of Indian economic policies and development since independence is followed by papers that focus on: Fiscal situation in the country; Environment for private economic activity; Education; Reservation of activities for small-scale industry, and Determinants of differentials in rates of growth across the various Indian states. Contributors include respected academic specialists on India and policy reform, high-level Indian administrators, and present and past policy-makers. The volume offers not only an examination of the progress that has been made, but also the problems yet to be confronted, with much insight into how to address them. It is an essential read for students, researchers, policy-makers and India-watchers.
There are no reviews yet.