An Independent India: 1947AD to 2020AD

In this chapter, the author examines India’s economic journey from 1947 to 2020 to provide contextual recommendations for sustainable development in India. The chapter begins by discussing Jawaharlal Nehru’s era as the first Prime Minister, his Nehru-Mahalanobis economic strategy, and the implications of this Soviet-style planned economy model. The chapter also delves into the ‘License Raj’, a system of permits and quotas that resulted in corruption and inefficiencies. The author also documents India’s liberalisation efforts between 1947 and the 1990s, which were finally necessitated by the collapse of the Soviet Union and IMF bailout in the early 1990s. A comparison is drawn between India’s economic development and China’s, the latter being more integrated and consistent, leading to its emergence as the world’s second largest economy by 2011. The chapter discusses key reforms such as the ‘New Industrial Policy,’ which opened the Indian market to the world. Finally Prime Minister Modi and the BJP’s pro-business, anti-corruption policies and ambitious economic goals are detailed. The chapter concludes by discussing prospects for India, emphasising the role of the BJP government and the need for further reforms in areas such as land and labour markets, infrastructure, unemployment, entrepreneurship and rural development. Additionally, it considers the challenges India faces in sustaining economic growth and the necessity of spreading prosperity more evenly among the population.