Parenting the economy: The Story of India’s Economic Development

Review article based on “A Sixth of Humanity: Independent India’s Development Odyssey” by Devesh Kapur & Arvind Subramaniam

Abstract

This article reviews Devesh Kapur and Arvind Subramanian’s study of India’s post‑independence development, which portrays a “precocious” democracy combining enlightened ambitions with a weak institutional and social base. It highlights their diagnosis of prolonged ruralisation, stunted industrialisation and early servicification, and assesses their claim that paternalistic centralisation, inefficient nationalisation and incomplete structural transformation produced islands of excellence amid broad underperformance.