Indian Political Economy
In 1950, Indians embraced the political freedoms guaranteed by their Constitution. In 1991, Indians took a giant leap toward economic freedom by liberalizing large parts of India’s controlled economy. Preserving and enhancing these freedoms is today’s challenge.
This program engages with the ideas and importance of these economic and political freedoms, through academic research, policy outreach and advocacy, mentoring, public engagement and communication, and by building a network of academic scholars, technocrats, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and students.
India experienced tremendous economic growth in the last three decades, lifting over a quarter of a billion people out of extreme poverty. However, substantial challenges remain as Indians face flagging economic growth, inadequate access to education and healthcare, environmental degradation, social and economic disenfranchisement of various groups, corruption, stifled entrepreneurship, and lack of state capacity. Our mission is to foster a deeper understanding of the structural issues in India’s democratic politics, constitutional constraints, and markets, that stand in the way of a freer and more prosperous India.
Ideas of India Podcast is a fortnightly podcast hosted by Dr Shruti Rajagopalan. She engages top thinkers working on Indian political economy, history, culture, and beyond to examine the ideas that can propel India forward. The podcast also provides, for doctoral and postdoctoral candidates working on the most pressing questions facing India, a platform to present their research to a wider audience.
The 1991 Project is an effort to revive the discourse on economic growth-centered reforms in India by focusing on economic ideas. Our team will publish essays, data visualizations, lecture series, podcasts, and policy papers demystifying the Indian economy in the coming months. It will also create a public history repository comprising policy documents, event timelines, and biographical accounts of the reformers who made these changes possible.
Oral Histories Initiative: An important part of The 1991 Project is to understand the political economy of policy reforms. It is essential to preserve the institutional memory of the active participants in the process to understand and learn how India might continue to address its structural problems. Our goal is to speak with the technocrats, bureaucrats, politicians, and economists, who worked on India’s liberalization and record their experiences in the form of oral histories.
Latest Work in Indian Political Economy
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The Rahul Gandhi Defamation Case | The "Soul Searching" Podcast
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Padma Desai, Economist, 1931-2023 | The Financial Times
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Ideas of India: Monetary Policy After Liberalization | Ideas of India
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Ideas of India: Individuals and the Indian State
- | Urban Economics Urban Economics
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Ideas of India: Order Without Design
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Ideas of India: Regional Economic Diversity
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Burden That Women Bear | The Hindu
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Ideas of India: How the World Became Rich
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ashwini Deshpande on Gender and Caste Discrimination and Affirmative Action in India | Ideas of India
Latest Work in Indian Political Economy
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
The Rahul Gandhi Defamation Case | The "Soul Searching" Podcast
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Padma Desai, Economist, 1931-2023 | The Financial Times
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ideas of India: Monetary Policy After Liberalization | Ideas of India
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Ideas of India: Individuals and the Indian State
- | Urban Economics Urban Economics
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ideas of India: Order Without Design
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ideas of India: Regional Economic Diversity
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Burden That Women Bear | The Hindu
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Ideas of India: How the World Became Rich
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ashwini Deshpande on Gender and Caste Discrimination and Affirmative Action in India | Ideas of India
Latest Work in Indian Political Economy
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
The Rahul Gandhi Defamation Case | The "Soul Searching" Podcast
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ideas of India: Monetary Policy After Liberalization | Ideas of India
- | Urban Economics Urban Economics
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ideas of India: Order Without Design
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ideas of India: Regional Economic Diversity
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ashwini Deshpande on Gender and Caste Discrimination and Affirmative Action in India | Ideas of India
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Vinay Sitapati on Liberalization and Narasimha Rao | Ideas of India
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Saumitra Jha on Commerce and Peace | Ideas of India
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Lant Pritchett on Reforming Development Economics | Ideas of India
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Naushad Forbes on Building Innovation in Industry | Ideas of India
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Barkha Dutt on the Humans of COVID | Ideas of India
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Anand Swamy and Tirthankar Roy on Law and the Economy | Ideas of India
- | Podcast Appearance Podcast Appearance
Ramachandra Guha on Rebels Against the Raj | Ideas of India
Latest Work in Indian Political Economy
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Padma Desai, Economist, 1931-2023 | The Financial Times
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Ideas of India: Individuals and the Indian State
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Burden That Women Bear | The Hindu
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Ideas of India: How the World Became Rich
- | Technology and Innovation Technology and Innovation
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The oft-forgotten beneficiary of digitisation is the frontline govt employee | The Week
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Towards Fuller Capital Convertibility | The Financial Express
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Financing models of Digital Ecosystems | Data Governance Network
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary