State, economy and development

What kind of state is India — interventionist, developmental, or retreating? The answer has changed across eras, from Nehruvian planning to liberalisation and beyond. This chapter traces the development planning model, the new economic policy of 1991, and the shift from growth alone to human development. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act is a telling example: a rights-based law that treats employment as an entitlement, not charity.