Getting India Back on Track: An Action Agenda for Reform

by Bibek Debroy, Ashley J. Tellis, Reece Trevor

Getting India Back on Track brings together some of India’s most accomplished analysts to spur a public debate about the reform agenda the new government should pursue in order to return the country to a path of high growth. It explores the challenges and opportunities faced by one of the most important–yet least understood–nations on earth and convenes some of India’s most leading policymakers to recommend policies in every major sector of the Indian economy.
These seventeen focused and concise memoranda offer the next generation of leaders and the general public alike a clear blueprint for India’s future.

Genres: India, Economics, Politics, Nonfiction

366 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Bibek Debroy was an Indian economist, who served as the chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India. He was also the Chairman of the Finance Ministry's 'Expert Committee for Infrastructure Classification and Financing Framework for Amrit Kaal'. Debroy has made significant contributions to game theory, economic theory, income and social inequalities, poverty, law reforms, railway reforms and Indology among others. From its inception in January 2015 until June 2019, Mr. Debroy was a member of the NITI Aayog, the think tank of the Indian Government. He was awarded the Padma Shri (the fourth-highest civilian honour in India) in 2015.
Bibek Debroy's recent co-authored magnum opus, Inked in India, stands distinguished as the premier comprehensive documentation, capturing the entirety of recognized fountain pen, nib, and ink manufacturers in India.
In 2016, he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the US-India Business Summit. In 2022, he was conferred with the Lifetime Achievement Award by The Australia India Chamber of Commerce (AICC). In February 2024, Debroy was conferred Insolvency Law Academy Emeritus Fellowship, in recognition of his distinguished leadership, public service, work and contributions in the field of insolvency.
Bibek Debroy died on 1 November 2024, at the age of 69. He had been admitted to All India Institutes of Medical Sciences in New Delhi one month prior.

Reviews

[Hrishikesh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent read. Not only an insight into issues facing India in different sectors, but also (more importantly) a set of solutions and recommendations on each subject. Agree or disagree with them is individual preorgative. But will definitely initiate mental process. Highly recommend.

[Satish · Rating 2 out of 5]

" Getting India Back on Track: An Action Agenda for Reform "


When first time i saw this book, i was thinking it to carry lots of real term analysis of Indian problems by prominent economist or professor which were listed on the hard cover, but after reading this book my all expectations washed away like a mountain in rain.

When i started reading this i was amazed to see the criticism about government initiatives of every front ,and these criticism volume were keep increasing with the upcoming chapters. This book remained in my current reading list for long time because everyday i used to expect that today i going to see something different in next chapter but every time i picked the book and i got the same picture and which urge me finally close this book for reading before finishing it, probably i won't pick this book again for reading.

This book is written in biased manner because its full of government criticism instead of true solution to real problems. We all know that India is going through periodic change phases,and every time we can't expect that each step taken by government would be positive result oriented, as sometime some action can give negative results too and this how we learn and move ahead. I agree that at certain point in this books some good solution were also suggested which i also think could be fruitful but every time bringing privatization in social frame for making things better could ruin the objective of policies, as its majorly observed that whenever government shake his hand with cooperates without any strong vigilance corruption are prone to be sowed and I don't think so i need to cite example for this too .

The best part of this book was the sources of different facts, which probably could help me in future to get current figures whenever i am going to write about any social issue.

Earlier i was wondering how could someone can resolve the India's core problems in just 350 pages but now i am very clear on how its possible.

[Guruprasad · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the Title of the Book suggest , This Book is a collection of Policy advise given to the Narendra Modi Govt on Various Issue on the Aim of Getting India back on Track of Development and after 4 years of Modi Govt in 2018 when i complete reading this book, i can easily say he has read the book , took action on the key areas where the advise and agenda is set in the book and Got India back on Track . well written book .

[Palash Bansal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and crisp essays on the various reform agendas in contemporary Indian politics, economy and legal system. One might not agree with all that has been written but the book does a good job in bringing to the forefront the issues that require serious thinking.

And of course, heavily biased. (given that it was launched by Modi, one has to expect that)

[S · Rating 4 out of 5]

i see its like a map, or a guide, surely its a good read for all government officials, there are so many important points are there to discuss and look up. worth reading one.

[Abhishek Maheshwari · Rating 4 out of 5]

No better way of understanding the current economic scenario of India, than by reading the book written by the renowned economic advisers for the Government on the specific fields of the economy. The book was very educating.

[Satwik · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book helps in understanding the nature of problems in different sectors like land reform, judiciary etc. It also tries to provide some solutions to the existing problems but it fails to account the pragmatism in some cases.

[Ashok · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an Autopsy of India's afflictions and possible solutions recommended by educated minds.

[Prabhat sharma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Getting India Back on Track: An Action Agenda for Reform (Paperback) by Bibek Debroy (editor)- India has fallen far and fast from the runaway growth rates it enjoyed in the first decade of the twenty-first century. In order to reverse this trend, New Delhi must seriously reflect on its policy choices across a wide range of issue areas. Getting India Back on track broadly coincides with the 2014 Indian elections to spur a public debate about the program that the next government should pursue in order to return the country to a path of high growth. This book convenes some of India's most accomplished analysts to recommend policies in every major sector of the Indian economy. Taken together, these seventeen focused and concise memoranda offer policymakers and the general public alike a clear blueprint for India's future. Contents Foreword Ratan N. Tata (Chairman, Tata Trusts) Introduction by Ashley J. Tellis and Reece Trevor (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace) Chapters 1. Maintaining Macroeconomic Stability by Ila Patnaik (National Institute of Public Finance and Policy) 2. Dismantling the Welfare State Surjit Bhalla (Oxus Investments) 3. Revamping Agriculture and the Public Distribution System by Ashok Gulati (Commission for Agriculture Costs and Prices) 4. Revisiting Manufacturing Policy by Rajiv Kumar (Centre for Policy Research) 5. Generating Employment by Omkar Goswami (Corporate and Economic Research Group) 6. Expanding Education and Skills by Laveesh Bhandari (Indicus Analytics) 7. Confronting Health Challenges by A. K. Shiva Kumar (National Advisory Council) 8. Accelerating Infrastructure Modernization by Rajiv Lall and Ritu Anand (IDFC Limited) 9. Managing Urbanization by Somik Lall and Tara Vishwanath (World Bank) 10. Renovating Land Management by Barun S. Mitra (Liberty Institute) and Madhumita D. Mitra (consultant) 11. Addressing Water Management by Tushaar Shah (International Water Management Institute) and Shilp Verma (independent researcher) 12. Reforming Energy Policy and Pricing by Sunjoy Joshi (Observer Research Foundation) 13. Managing the Environment by Ligia Noronha (Energy and Resources Institute) 14. Strengthening Rule of Law by Devesh Kapur (University of Pennsylvania) and Milan Vaishnav (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace) 15. Correcting the Administrative Deficit by Bibek Debroy (Centre for Policy Research) 16. Building Advanced Technology Capacity for Competitive Arms Acquisition by Ravinder Pal Singh (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute) 17. Rejuvenating Foreign Policy by C. Raja Mohan (Observer Research Foundation and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All these articles recommend policies in every major sector of the Indian economy. This a good read book for readers and students of all age groups.

[Kedar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Introduction by Tellis is worth reading, where he says that socialist economic policy has eroded the legitimacy of other 2 pillars of India ie democracy and civic nationalism. The articles written by experts convince us of this. The book was written just before 2014 general election and it is sad to note that many structural reforms recommended here by experts and also by various committees setup by government remain on paper.

[Deepanshu Aggarwal · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read book for those interested in getting leading intellectuals' perspective on how the India Growth Story can be revived. Doing that would require a host of changes on the economic, diplomatic, administrative front and that's what gets enumerated in the book.

[Viswanathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just I complete reading,the Modi2.0 issued property title cards for rural households.

[Anurag Kharapkar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Getting India Back on Track discusses social and economic reforms which shaped post-independent India. A lot must be fixed because of the past few years' sluggish reforms and sagging growth, and what should the new administration do? It outlines the difficulties the government faces and suggests solutions. It brings together some of the most accomplished analysts in India to make policy recommendations for each vital sector of the Indian economy. The book is open to discussing the economy. It offers viewpoints from 22 leading thinkers on the problems plaguing various parts of Indian politics, including defence, administrative reforms, and the environment. It also discusses the necessary policy steps to get the nation moving again. Greater decentralisation and devolution are required to restore the variety of sectors of centre-state relations. One way to do that may be to loosen up the rigidity of many of these centrally sponsored programmes. These programmes have no purpose, so one must weaken and dilute the rigid central template to increase effectiveness. If there is one sector that has declined significantly over the past few years, it is the financial sector. The book questions policies the government has implemented over the years, which are not economically sustainable to continue because the need and cause of those policies are long gone. Debroy suggests that significant policy changes are required in every sector, predominantly agricultural and foreign policies.

[Srikanth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recently I had a conversation with an acquaintance of mine regarding the 60 Yrs of dynastic rule. He said, even though he voted for Modi the governance of Cong was right. When I asked and debated him on facts like sycophancy, license raj, quotas, Planning commission and Shenoy’s 2nd 5 year plan dissent note. He shut me up with this statement.

“I go on my own analysis of perception based on external data”

Me: What external data are you talking about?

Him: The buildings & things like that. Now you know why we are the way we are.

With this level of knowledge that is equivalent of dust accumulated over a period of few years leftists, secularism and libtards will always rule the roost.

Now let me talk about a book: Getting India back on track. Hard bound, thick with 17 chapters of facts, figures and lots of info that makes sense.

This book talks a little bit about everything with facts and figures. If that gentleman had read even the introduction probably he would have been better informed. This goes for a lot of us in the social media age. Where rumors spread on ebola & how Tulsi is supposed to be a cure. Where increase in price rise is give its own twist.

Not that this book is without its contradictions. Best e.g. is Omkar Goswami talks about generating employment to a huge number of people and its challenges and the next chapter talks about lack of teachers and the next one talks about lack of qualified health professionals.

The chapter on energy pricing and policy was a huge disappointment. It could have done better with the facts and figures. I also wonder how and why Mr. Brahma chellany wasn’t asked to write on water and a separate chapter on dealing with China.

But still this book is awesome.

The best welfare for a soldier is to train him well – Erwin Rommel So get yourself this book and train yourself well for the sake of our country.

My rating 4 stars out of 5

[Amit Tiwary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant essays on various topics, very well analysed and written. Bibek Debroy is an institution in himself.

[Priyasarwar · Rating 4 out of 5]

very wel written book...