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India's economic development since independence: An interpretative survey

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  • Kunal Sen

Abstract

When India became a republic in 1950, the economy was primarily agrarian, with three-fifths of output originating from agriculture. In the sixty years since independence, there has been a significant transformation of economic activity away from agriculture, with less than one-fifth of output now originating from agriculture and the rest from manufacturing and services. Since the 1980s, along with structural change, there has been strong economic growth, till 2010, followed by a period of declining growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Kunal Sen, 2023. "India's economic development since independence: An interpretative survey," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2023-47, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
  • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2023-47
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bhagwati, Jagdish, 1993. "India in Transition: Freeing the Economy," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198288473.
    2. Laura Alfaro & Anusha Chari, 2009. "India Transformed? Insights from the Firm Level 1988-2005," NBER Working Papers 15448, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Jagdish N. Bhagwati & T. N. Srinivasan, 1975. "Foreign Trade Regimes and Economic Development: India," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number bhag75-1.
    4. Satish Chand & Kunal Sen, 2002. "Trade Liberalization and Productivity Growth: Evidence from Indian Manufacturing," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 6(1), pages 120-132, February.
    5. Richard Palmer-Jones & Kunal Sen, 2003. "What has luck got to do with it? A regional analysis of poverty and agricultural growth in rural India," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(1), pages 1-31.
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    Keywords

    Economic growth; Structural change; Economic policy; India;
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