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Battles Half Won

Author

Listed:
  • Sadiq Ahmed
  • Ashutosh Varshney

Abstract

Rapid growth since 1980 has transformed India from the world's 50th ranked economy in nominal U.S. dollars to the 10th largest in 2005. The growth of per capita income has helped reduce poverty. At the same time, evidence suggests that income inequality is rising and that the gap in average per capita income between the rich and poor states is growing. This paper reviews India's long term growth experience with a view to understanding the determinants of growth and the underlying political economy. The paper looks specifically at the political economy of India's growth transformation from a low-growth environment (pre-1980s) to a rapid-growth environment (post 1980s) and asks how sustainable is this transformation in view of concerns about regional disparity and income inequality. The paper concludes that the pledge that India's post-independence leadership had undertaken to abolish mass poverty remains only partially redeemed. Half the battle still lies ahead. Many more would like the fruits of the economic boom to come to them. The greatest challenge for India's policy makers today is to balance the growth momentum with inclusionary policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Sadiq Ahmed & Ashutosh Varshney, 2008. "Battles Half Won," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 28048.
  • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbpubs:28048
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    File URL: https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/28048/577150NWP0Box353766B01PUBLIC10gcwp015web.pdf?sequence=1
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Nandini Gupta, 2010. "Selling family silver to pay the grocers bill? The case of privatization in India," Working Papers 2222, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University, revised Oct 2010.
    2. Naresh Kumar & Ritu Rani, 2019. "Regional Disparities in Social Development: Evidence from States and Union Territories of India," South Asian Survey, , vol. 26(1), pages 1-27, March.

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