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The Enigma of India

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  • Kaushik Basu

Abstract

India's high growth over the last fifteen years has inspired several recent books and papers to examine the growth's source and sustainability--the two-volume study by Arvind Virmani being a case in point. This paper evaluates these recent works. It is argued that the cause of the take-off does not fit into any easy ideological category as suggested by Virmani. The current high growth has been achieved in several steps, with distinct factors of propulsion behind each step. There is reason to expect the growth to be sustainable, although destabilizing political tensions will arise from the increasing inequality. The paper also evaluates how India's growth relates to the global economy.

Suggested Citation

  • Kaushik Basu, 2008. "The Enigma of India," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 46(2), pages 396-406, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:jeclit:v:46:y:2008:i:2:p:396-406
    Note: DOI: 10.1257/jel.46.2.396
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Kaushik Basu & Annemie Maertens, 2007. "The pattern and causes of economic growth in India," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 23(2), pages 143-167, Summer.
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    6. Abhijit Banerjee & Thomas Piketty, 2005. "Top Indian Incomes, 1922-2000," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 19(1), pages 1-20.
    7. Timothy Besley & Robin Burgess, 2004. "Can Labor Regulation Hinder Economic Performance? Evidence from India," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 119(1), pages 91-134.
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    Cited by:

    1. Fuchs, Andreas & Vadlamannati, Krishna Chaitanya, 2013. "The Needy Donor: An Empirical Analysis of India’s Aid Motives," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 110-128.
    2. Amparo Castello-Climent & Abhiroop Mukhopadhyay, 2010. "Mass education or a minority well educated elite in the process of development: The case of India," Discussion Papers 10-08, Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi.
    3. B.S. Chimni, 2010. "Mapping Indian Foreign Economic Policy," International Studies, , vol. 47(2-4), pages 163-185, April.
    4. Prema-chandra Athukorala, 2017. "India’s Long Road: The Search for Prosperity by Vijay Joshi Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2016 Pp. xi + 345. ISBN 978 0 19 061013 5," Asian-Pacific Economic Literature, The Crawford School, The Australian National University, vol. 31(2), pages 137-145, November.
    5. Emran, M. Shahe & Shilpi, Forhad, 2015. "Gender, Geography, and Generations: Intergenerational Educational Mobility in Post-Reform India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 362-380.
    6. Geetilaxmi MOHAPATRA & A. K. GIRI & Madhu SEHRAWAT, 2016. "Foreign aid, macroeconomic policies and economic growth nexus in India: An ARDL bounds testing approach," Theoretical and Applied Economics, Asociatia Generala a Economistilor din Romania - AGER, vol. 0(4(609), W), pages 183-202, Winter.
    7. Peter E. Robertson, 2012. "Deciphering the Hindu growth epic," Indian Growth and Development Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 5(1), pages 51-69, April.
    8. Hwang, Karl, 2010. "Measuring Geopolitical Power in India: A Review of the National Security Index (NSI)," GIGA Working Papers 136, GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies.
    9. Ghate, Chetan & Wright, Stephen, 2012. "The “V-factor”: Distribution, timing and correlates of the great Indian growth turnaround," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(1), pages 58-67.
    10. Castelló-Climent, Amparo & Mukhopadhyay, Abhiroop, 2013. "Mass education or a minority well educated elite in the process of growth: The case of India," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 303-320.
    11. Mani, Sunil, 2009. "The Growth of Knowledge-intensive Entrepreneurship in India, 1991-2007," MERIT Working Papers 2009-051, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    12. Nomoto, Takaaki, 2016. "Rainfall Variability and Macroeconomic Performance:A Case Study of India, 1952–2013," MPRA Paper 71976, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Sunil Mani, 2009. "The Growth of Knowledge-Intensive Entrepreneurship in India, 1991-2007 Analysis of its Evidence and Facilitating Factors," Working Papers id:1877, eSocialSciences.
    14. Manmohan Agarwal & John Whalley, 2013. "The 1991 Reforms, Indian Economic Growth, and Social Progress," NBER Working Papers 19024, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    15. Geetilaxmi MOHAPATRA & A. K. GIRI & Madhu SEHRAWAT, 2016. "Foreign aid, macroeconomic policies and economic growth nexus in India: An ARDL bounds testing approach," Theoretical and Applied Economics, Asociatia Generala a Economistilor din Romania / Editura Economica, vol. 0(4(609), W), pages 183-202, Winter.
    16. Hölscher, Jens & Marelli, Enrico & Signorelli, Marcello, 2010. "China and India in the global economy," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 34(3), pages 212-217, September.
    17. Paul SOARE, 2014. "The Application Of Six Sigma Within Bpm In A Financial Services Outsourced Back-Office Environment," Proceedings of the INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE, Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 8(1), pages 518-525, November.
    18. Ashok Kotwal & Bharat Ramaswami & Wilima Wadhwa, 2011. "Economic Liberalization and Indian Economic Growth: What's the Evidence?," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 49(4), pages 1152-1199, December.
    19. Peter E. Robertson, 2010. "Investment Led Growth In India: Hindu Fact or Mythology?," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 10-08, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    20. Pulapre Balakrishnan & Mausumi Das & M. Parameswaran, 2015. "The Mechanism of Long-Term Growth in India," Working Papers id:6414, eSocialSciences.
    21. Kevin S. Nell, 2013. "A Total Factor Productivity-Capital Accumulation Hypothesis of India’s Growth Transitions," CEF.UP Working Papers 1313, Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Economia do Porto.
    22. Balakrishnan, Pulapre & Das, Mausumi & Parameswaran, M., 2017. "The internal dynamic of Indian economic growth," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 46-61.
    23. Basu, Kaushik, 2014. "Fiscal policy as an instrument of investment and growth," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6850, The World Bank.
    24. Agarwal, Manmohan & Whalley, John, 2013. "The 1991 Reforms, Indian Economic Growth, and Social Progress," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 128, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F02 - International Economics - - General - - - International Economic Order and Integration
    • O11 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O17 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence
    • O53 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Asia including Middle East
    • Q01 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - General - - - Sustainable Development

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