Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan.
Credit: Reuters File Photo
New Delhi: "Is India surging forward, having just overtaken the UK to become the fifth-largest economy in the world?" or "Is it floundering, unable to provide jobs for the millions joining the labour force?" are among the questions on India's growth and progress that former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan and economist Rohit Lamba seek to answer in their upcoming book, Breaking the Mould: Reimagining India's Economic Future.
The book, scheduled to release under Penguin Random House India's (PRHI) business imprint in December, highlights the critical challenges that India faces in today's global economy when compared to other major economies as it urges "the nation to break free from the shackles of the past and look to the possibilities of the future".
"India is at a critical juncture. The decisions we make now will determine its economic future, either for the good or the bad. Our book outlines India's options -- it can either blindly follow outdated paths that other countries took or it can chart a uniquely Indian way.
"We believe that India has a clear trajectory which builds on its historical strengths, and it is not the one it is currently embarked on. We are enthusiastic about making the case to all our audiences, sharing what we have learnt on the journey together," said Rajan, currently a professor at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, in a statement.
In the book, the authors explain how India can accelerate economic development by investing in human capital, expanding opportunities in high-skilled services and manufacturing centred on innovative new products, and making India a ferment of ideas and creativity to accelerate growth.
They also claim to explain how India's democratic traditions will support this path, helped further by governance reforms, including strengthening democratic institutions and greater decentralisation.
"... How to bring prosperity to the hundreds of millions of our fellow citizens who are painfully just about getting by. I've known Raghu for a decade now, and this question would engross us every time we spoke. We are excited to bring our knowledge of economics, politics, and society to ask and attempt to answer this question in what we hope is a new vision for the economic future of India," said Lamba.
According to the publishers, the book examines fundamental policy choices that concern every Indian and is an important book on the way forward for India and the Indian economy.
"A timely, well researched and relevant book, it attempts to offer a vision for India’s future and its people. We are proud to publish it in December, and I recommend it to all our readers," said Milee Ashwarya, publisher at PRHI.
Rajan's previously authored books include award-winning Fault Lines, I Do What I Do, The Third Pillar and Saving Capitalism from the Capitalists with Luigi Zingales.
The book, priced at Rs 799, is currently available for pre-order online.