India's Economic Growth since 1980

India Economy Growth :The rate of growth

improved in the 1980s. From FY 1980 to FY
1989, the economy grew at an annual rate of
5.5 percent, or 3.3 percent on
a per capita basis. Industry grew at an annual
rate of 6.6 percent and agriculture at a rate of
3.6 percent. A high rate of investment was a
major factor in improved economic growth.
Investment went from about 19 percent
of GDP in the early 1970s to nearly 25 percent
in the early 1980s. India, however, required a
higher rate of investment to attain
comparable economic growth than did most
other low-income developing countries,
indicating a lower rate of return on
investments.

Part of the adverse Indian experience was

explained by investment in large, long-
gestating, capital-intensive projects, such as
electric power, irrigation, and infrastructure.
However, delayed completions, cost overruns,
and under-use of capacity were contributing
factors.

Private savings financed most of India's investment, but by the mid-1980s further growth in
private savings was difficult because they were already at quite a high level. As a result,
during the late 1980s India relied increasingly on borrowing from foreign sources (see Aid,
this ch.). This trend led to a balance of payments crisis in 1990; in order to receive new
loans, the government had no choice but to agree to further measures of economic
liberalization. This commitment to economic reform was reaffirmed by the government that
came to power in June 1991.

India's primary sector, including agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining, and quarrying,
accounted for 32.8 percent of GDP in FY 1991 (see table 17, Appendix). The size of the
agricultural sector and its vulnerability to the vagaries of the monsoon cause relatively large
fluctuations in the sector's contribution to GDP from one year to another (see Crop Output,
ch. 7).

In FY 1991, the contribution to GDP of industry, including manufacturing, construction, and

utilities, was 27.4 percent; services, including trade, transportation, communications, real
estate and finance, and public- and private-sector services, contributed 39.8 percent. The
steady increase in the proportion of services in the national economy reflects increased
market-determined processes, such as the spread of rural banking, and government
activities, such as defense spending (see Agricultural Credit, ch. 7; Defense Spending, ch.
10).
Despite a sometimes disappointing rate of growth, the Indian economy was transformed
between 1947 and the early 1990s. The number of kilowatt-hours of electricity generated,
for example, increased more than fiftyfold. Steel production rose from 1.5 million tons a
year to 14.7 million tons a year. The country produced space satellites and nuclear-power
plants, and its scientists and engineers produced an atomic explosive device (see Major
Research Organizations, this ch.; Space and Nuclear Programs, ch. 10). Life expectancy
increased from twenty-seven years to fifty-nine years. Although the population increased by
485 million between 1951 and 1991, the availability of food grains per capita rose from 395
grams per day in FY 1950 to 466 grams in FY 1992 (see Structure and Dynamics, ch. 2).

However, considerable dualism remains in the Indian economy. Officials and economists
make an important distinction between the formal and informal sectors of the economy. The
informal, or unorganized, economy is largely rural and encompasses farming, fishing,
forestry, and cottage industries. It also includes petty vendors and some small-scale
mechanized industry in both rural and urban areas. The bulk of the population is employed
in the informal economy, which contributes more than 50 percent of GDP. The formal
economy consists of large units in the modern sector for which statistical data are relatively
good. The modern sector includes large-scale manufacturing and mining, major financial
and commercial businesses, and such public-sector enterprises as railroads,
telecommunications, utilities, and government itself.

The greatest disappointment of economic development is the failure to reduce more

substantially India's widespread poverty. Studies have suggested
that income distribution changed little between independence and the early 1990s, although
it is possible that the poorer half of the population improved its position slightly. Official
estimates of the proportion of the population that lives below thepoverty line tend to vary
sharply from year to year because adverse economic conditions, especially rises
in food prices, are capable of lowering the standard of living of many families who normally
live just above the subsistence level. The Indian government's poverty line is based on an
income sufficient to ensure access to minimum nutritional standards, and even most
persons above the poverty line have low levels of consumption compared with much of the
world.

Estimates in the late 1970s put the number of people who lived in poverty at 300 million, or
nearly 50 percent of the population at the time. Poverty was reduced during the 1980s, and
in FY 1989 it was estimated that about 26 percent of the population, or 220 million people,
lived below the poverty line. Slower economic growth and higher inflation in FY 1990 and FY
1991 reversed this trend. In FY 1991, it was estimated that 332 million people, or 38
percent of the population, lived below the poverty line.

India Economy Growth - Farmers and other rural residents make up the large majority of
India's poor. Some own very small amounts of land while others are field hands,
seminomadic shepherds, or migrant workers. The urban poor include many construction
workers and petty vendors. The bulk of the poor work, but low productivity and intermittent
employment keep incomes low. Poverty is most prevalent in the states of Orissa, Bihar,
Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh, and least prevalent in Haryana, Punjab, Himachal
Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir.

By the early 1990s, economic changes led to the growth in the number of Indians with
significant economic resources. About 10 million Indians are considered upper class, and
roughly 300 million are part of the rapidly increasing middle class. Typical middle-class
occupations include owning a small business or being a corporate executive, lawyer,
physician, white-collar worker, or land-owning farmer. In the 1980s, the growth of the
middle class was reflected in the increased consumption of consumer durables, such as
televisions, refrigerators, motorcycles, and automobiles. In the early 1990s, domestic and
foreign businesses hoped to take advantage of India's economic liberalization to increase
the range of consumer products offered to this market.

Housing and the ancillary utilities of sewer and water systems lag considerably behind the
population's needs. India's cities have large shantytowns built of scrap or readily available
natural materials erected on whatever space is available, including sidewalks. Such
dwellings lack piped water, sewerage, and electricity. The government has attempted to
build housing facilities and utilities for urban development, but the efforts have fallen far
short of demand. Administrative controls and other aspects of government policy have
discouraged many private investors from constructing housing units.

Liberalization in the Early 1990s

Increased borrowing from foreign sources in the late 1980s, which helped fuel economic
growth, led to pressure on the balance of payments. The problem came to a head in August
1990 when Iraq invaded Kuwait, and the price of oil soon doubled. In addition, many Indian
workers resident in Persian Gulf states either lost their jobs or returned home out of fear for
their safety, thus reducing the flow of remittances (see Size and Composition of
the Work Force, this ch.). The direct economic impact of the Persian Gulf conflict was
exacerbated by domestic social and political developments. In the early 1990s, there was
violence over two domestic issues: the reservation of a proportion of public-sector jobs for
members of Scheduled Castes (see Glossary) and the Hindu-Muslim conflict at Ayodhya (see
Public Worship, ch. 3; Political Issues, ch. 8). The central government fell in November 1990
and was succeeded by a minority government. The cumulative impact of these events shook
international confidence in India's economic viability, and the country found it increasingly
difficult to borrow internationally. As a result, India made various agreements with
the International MonetaryFund (IMF--see Glossary) and other organizations that included
commitments to speed up liberalization (see United Nations, ch. 9).

In the early 1990s, considerable progress was made in loosening government regulations,
especially in the area of foreign trade. Many restrictions on private companies were lifted,
and new areas were opened to private capital. However, India remains one of the world's
most tightly regulated major economies. Many powerful vested interests, including private
firms that have benefited from protectionism, labor unions, and much of the bureaucracy,
oppose liberalization. There is also considerable concern that liberalization will reinforce
class and regional economic disparities.

The balance of payments crisis of 1990 and subsequent policy changes led to a temporary
decline in the GDP growth rate, which fell from 6.9 percent in FY 1989 to 4.9 percent in FY
1990 to 1.1 percent in FY 1991. In March 1995, the estimated growth rate for FY 1994 was
5.3 percent. Inflation peaked at 17 percent in FY 1991, fell to 9.5 percent in FY 1993, and
then accelerated again, reaching 11 percent in late FY 1994. This increase was attributed to
a sharp increase in prices and a shortfall in such critical sectors as sugar, cotton, and
oilseeds. Many analysts agree that the poor suffer most from the
increased inflation rate and reduced growth rate. India Economy Growth Data 1995.
Courtesy Library of Congress.
GROWTH:

Family business

Not all businesses are started for growth, profit maximization or even for eternalness-
many are established or purchased with the needs and preferences of the owners and
their families being paramount. That is the essence of family business and it sets them
apart from enterprises, in which the owners and their families matter little to the strategy
or operations of the enterprise.

lthough it is widely accepted that the tourism and hospitality sectors are dominated by
small, owner operated business, little has been written specifically about the family
dimension. The thorough review of tourism and hospitality literature contained reveals
growing attention to small businesses and entrepreneurship in this industry, but until
now the core family related issues have been neglected. And while many books and
manuals have been published to guide families and owner operators in generic
business terms, none have dealt with the unique set of opportunities and issues that
stem from owning and operating a business in tourism and hospitality.

II. What is family business

Family business has no commonly accepted meaning. We start with the premise that a
business of any kind is a profit making venture or enterprise. There are, however, a
number of complications, especially within tourism and hospitality, such as part time
businesses, economic activities that are secondary to a main operation and a business
not easily separated from the family home. Indeed, this industry is somewhat unique in
presenting the enterprising person or family with so many business options.

Self employment is a related concept. Owning and operating a business makes one self
employed but a person can be self employed and not own or operate a business.
Provision of services is not the same as owning and operating a profit making business.
Normally a business is a legal entity owned by one or more people, although micro
hospitality ventures will not usually meet this criterion.

III. Definitions of family business

At the most basic level a family business can be defined as an enterprise which in
practice is controlled by members of a single family. This definition can encompass
businesses that involve only the owner, often called sole proprietorship firms.
Definitional complications arise when non-family members are involved in management
or ownership or when a family firm goes public with a share offering. Other definitions
stress the degree of family involvement, whether or not the business has been or will be
kept in the family across more than one generation or a mix of criteria. In general,
ownership and managerial criteria are both used.
IV. Scope and significance of family business

In most countries family business is the dominant form of business ownership and
management. Historically, companies and other forms of ownership developed following
individual and family run farms and businesses, particularly to meet the needs of
generating larger amounts of capital and dealing with legal issues such as protection
against lawsuits and bankruptcy. It was the Industrial Revolution that replaced family
based craft industry with larger manufacturing enterprises. More recently, the rise of a
giant service sector generated numerous new opportunities for family ventures.

Although big, public companies tend to attract the most attention, especially in terms of
share offerings, stock values and speculation, family businesses will undoubtedly
endure as the backbone of enterprise. The desire for autonomy to be ones own boss
and for family independence appears to be a basic and unchanging human trait. This
motivator accounts for many career switching entrepreneurs, who start up tourism and
hospitality businesses. And its all just to escape what they do not like about their
existing work, and to steer their own economic future. But in lesser developed
economies there might be little choice either runs a business of own or move out.
Tourism in developing countries offers numerous opportunities for self employment and
small, family businesses that otherwise would not exist.

Family businesses are especially dominant in rural and peripheral areas because of
traditional land owning patterns and the impracticalities of operating larger corporations
in marginal economies. Hence, farm based tourism and hospitality consists almost
entirely of family businesses. Increasingly, individual and family investors are drawn to
rural and peripheral areas or small towns for lifestyle reasons and tourism or hospitality
provides the economic means to realize these goals.

V. The Business management perspective

The importance of family business as a distinct form of management has only lately
been recognized by academics and has clearly been paid very little attention by tourism
and hospitality scholars. Owner operations and family owned businesses have been
lumped into the categories of small and medium enterprises, which ignore the fact that
ownership makes a huge difference and that many are small for very personal,
deliberate reasons. Also, the literature is full of references to mom and pop operations
which are usually a derisive term stemming from the supposed insignificance of the
sector.

Consequently, little is known about the management of the family business in tourism
and hospitality. What has been demonstrated repeatedly, in many countries and
settings, is that tourism and hospitality attracts many investors for lifestyle and
autonomy reasons, including the desire to be self employed and the opportunity to
remain in or move to, attractive rural and resort areas. And there are many unique
opportunities for individual entrepreneurship and family business within the industry.
Accordingly, the motives, goals and business behavior of owners are different from
other business types. Businesses owned and operated by individuals and families are
typically not grown for the sake of getting bigger, nor are they managed as if profit
making was the sole objective.

VI. Starting a family business

Start up is the most critical stage in the family business, not growth and not succession.
This is because many founders have little interest in growing and succession or
inheritance is not an issue. The future of the business will always be in doubt, with many
strategic options available, but the course of most family businesses is set as soon as
the founders make he decision to purchase or create an enterprise in tourism and
hospitality the vast majority, from intent or necessity, will always remain small, hands on
operations.

VII. Sustaining and developing the family business

Growth is not the preoccupation of most family business owners. Simply sustaining the
business is challenging enough and while growth is not necessary, some kind of
development is inevitable all businesses change. The change process can be managed
to add value to the business and improve the familys lifestyle or it can be imposed by
external factors.

The first section examines the meaning of success and failure for a family business, and
then focuses on specific challenges and causes of failure. Next, arguments for growing
a business are addressed, then preconditions and barriers to growth. This is followed by
analysis of strategic marketing and family branding. Research findings are then
presented on how seasonality affects family businesses and various strategic
responses from a sample of owners.
ECONOMY:

India has fared the global financial crisis remarkabley well. Despite the 2008-2009
downturn, the government expects the annual GDP growth to return to around 9%.
India's population is estimated at more than 1.1 billion and is growing at 1.55% a year. It
has the world's 12th largest economy--and the third largest in Asia behind Japan and
China--with total GDP in 2008 of around $1.21 trillion ($1,210 billion). Services, industry,
and agriculture account for 54%, 29%, and 18% of GDP respectively. India is
capitalizing on its large numbers of well-educated people skilled in the English language
to become a major exporter of software services and software workers, but more than
half of the population depends on agriculture for its livelihood. 700 million Indians live on
$2 per day or less, but there is a large and growing middle class of more than 50 million
Indians with disposable income ranging from 200,000 to 1,000,000 rupees per year
($4,166-$20,833). Estimates are that the middle class will grow ten-fold by 2025.

India continues to move forward, albeit haltingly, with market-oriented economic reforms
that began in 1991. Reforms include increasingly liberal foreign investment and
exchange regimes, industrial decontrol, reductions in tariffs and other trade barriers,
opening and modernization of the financial sector, significant adjustments in
government monetary and fiscal policies, and more safeguards for intellectual property
rights.

The economy has posted an average growth rate of more than 7% in the decade since
1997, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points. India achieved 9.6% GDP
growth in 2006, 9.0% in 2007, and 6.6% in 2008, significantly expanding manufactures
through late 2008. Growth for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009 was initially
expected to be between 8.5-9.0%, but has been revised downward by a number of
economists to 7.0% or less because of the financial crisis and resulting global economic
slowdown. Foreign portfolio and direct investment inflows have risen significantly in
recent years. They contributed to the $283.5 billion in foreign exchange reserves by
December 2009. Government receipts from the 34-day 3G auction were $14.6 billion.

Economic growth is constrained by inadequate infrastructure, a cumbersome

bureaucracy, corruption, labor market rigidities, regulatory and foreign investment
controls, the "reservation" of key products for small-scale industries, and high fiscal
deficits. The outlook for further trade liberalization is mixed, and a key World Trade
Organization (WTO) Doha Ministerial in July 2008 was unsuccessful due to differences
between the U.S. and India (as well as China) over market access. India eliminated
quotas on 1,420 consumer imports in 2002 and has incrementally lowered non-
agricultural customs duties in recent successive budgets. However, the tax structure is
complex, with compounding effects of various taxes.

U.S.-India bilateral merchandise trade in 2008 topped nearly $50 billion. Principal U.S.
exports are diagnostic or lab reagents, aircraft and parts, advanced machinery, cotton,
fertilizers, ferrous waste/scrap metal, and computer hardware. Major U.S. imports from
India include textiles and ready-made garments, Internet-enabled services, agricultural
and related products, gems and jewelry, leather products, and chemicals.

The rapidly growing software sector is boosting service exports and modernizing India's
economy. Software exports crossed $35 billion in FY 2009, while business process
outsourcing (BPO) revenues hit $14.8 billion in 2009. Personal computer penetration is
14 per 1,000 persons. The number of cell phone users is expected to rise to nearly 300
million by 2010. 

The United States is India's largest investment partner, with a 13% share. India's total
inflow of U.S. direct investment was estimated at more than $16 billion through 2008.
Proposals for direct foreign investment are considered by the Foreign Investment
Promotion Board and generally receive government approval. Automatic approvals are
available for investments involving up to 100% foreign equity, depending on the kind of
industry. Foreign investment is particularly sought after in power generation,
telecommunications, ports, roads, petroleum exploration/processing, and mining.

India's external debt was nearly $230 billion by the end of 2008, up from $126 billion in
2005-2006. Foreign assistance was approximately $3 billion in 2006-2007, with the
United States providing about $126 million in development assistance. The World Bank
plans to double aid to India to almost $3 billion a year, with focus on infrastructure,
education, health, and rural livelihoods.
India A Global Economic Super Power

India A Global Economic Super Power

India is poised to take over the developed countries to emerge at the top of the heap in the global
economic superpower league by 2030, says a survey.More than half of the respondents (53 per
cent) of a survey commissioned by London-based independent think-tank Legatum Institute said
India is likely to be the world's most important economic power by 2030.According to the
respondents of the survey, India is now on course to outstrip developed nations such as -- the
United States, Japan, Germany and the fast-emerging economic giant China over the next two
decades.
The survey, which questioned nearly 2,400 Indian senior managers, entrepreneurs and aspiring
entrepreneurs said the levels of confidence among the country's wealth-creators is very high,
with nearly nine in ten saying they expected India to be in a stronger economic position in the
next five years.
Only one in five said the world economic crisis had badly affected business in India, the survey
said
India is already moving up the economic

league tables as the 12th largest economy in the world, as per the World Bank.
Besides, it also ranked 45th in the internationally respected 2009 Legatum Prosperity Index --
which embraces social and political data to provide a wider measure of national success.
About two-thirds of the respondents said Indians were more entrepreneurial than people from
other countries and 84 per cent said their country was going in the right direction.
Beyond making money, Indian entrepreneurs are also highly motivated by the broader social
impact of their work. Over half (54 per cent) of respondents say the social effects of their
business, such as improving the quality of life in their communities or developing people, are a
main motivation for what they do, the survey said.
Business start-ups in India in 2007 numbered 20,000 and the evidence for India's economic
optimism is vast: 
  India's automobile industry is one of the fastest growing in the world, boasting exports
greater...
50 POWER PEOPLE OF INDIA
India Today » 50 Power People of India

Ratan Tata: World class

He commands the unquestioned attention of governments and corporates though he does not figure in any list of
Indian billionaires.

Mukesh Ambani: Above the league

He is the world's richest Indian worth over $30 billion.

Anil Ambani: The fighter

He is a fighter because he never blinks first and has taken on his big brother to carve out an empire from leftovers.

Aamir Khan: The megahit man

He is India's most consistent box-office star, with four films in four successive years grossing over Rs 100 crore each,
proving himself as an actor, director, and producer of films that make a difference.

Sachin Tendulkar: Record breaker

Record breaker because along with his cricket bat, he still holds India in the palm of his hand.

Shah Rukh Khan: Tough act

Tough act because he stared down the bullying Shiv Sena, emerged as the voice of the liberal Indian, and showed
courage to a city that lives in fear of paper tigers.

Shashikant and Ravi Ruia: The world is not enough

The world is not enough because they have the ear of those in power, whether in the states or at the Centre.

Samir and Vineet Jain: Daily mint

They constantly innovate to stay ahead of the curve, whether it is by launching a new weekend paper or a separate
edition of Speaking Tree.

Kumar Mangalam Birla: Holding steady

Holding steady because he was the last man standing in blustery economic conditions where his company's revenue
grew steadily at 4 per cent and continued firm in its position as the lowest cost producer of aluminium and copper.

Anand Mahindra: Hard drive

Through the worst of times he symbolised true entrepreneurial optimism.

 India vs China Population Growth

The Population Growth of the two countries, China and India has been well over that of other continents and regions,
over the past few centuries, with a tremendous spurt in growth from 1950 onwards.

COPY FROM: INDIA REPORT

 Globalization In India
Globalization in India has allowed companies to increase their base of operations,
expand their workforce with minimal investments, and provide new services to a
broad range of consumers.

The process of globalization has been an integral part of the recent economic progress
made by India. Globalization has played a major role in export-led growth, leading to the
enlargement of the job market in India.

One of the major forces of globalization in India has been in the growth of outsourced IT
and business process outsourcing (BPO) services. The last few years have seen an
increase in the number of skilled professionals in India employed by both local and
foreign companies to service customers in the US and Europe in particular. Taking
advantage of India’s lower cost but educated and English-speaking work force, and
utilizing global communications technologies such as voice-over IP (VOIP), email and
the internet, international enterprises have been able to lower their cost base by
establishing outsourced knowledge-worker operations in India.
As a new Indian middle class has developed around the wealth that the IT
and BPO industries have brought to the country, a new consumer base has developed.
International companies are also expanding their operations in India to service this
massive growth opportunity.
Notable examples of international companies that have done well in India in the recent
years include Pepsi, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, and Kentucky Fried Chicken, whose
products have been well accepted by Indians at large.
Globalization in India has been advantageous for companies that have ventured in
the Indian market. By simply increasing their base of operations, expanding their
workforce with minimal investments, and providing services to a broad range of
consumers, large companies entering the Indian market have opened up many
profitable opportunities.

Indian companies are rapidly gaining confidence and are themselves now major players
in globalization through international expansion. From steel to Bollywood, from cars to
IT, Indian companies are setting themselves up as powerhouses of tomorrow’s global
economy.

India’s Liberalization Era

chillibreeze writer  —  Phanikiran
The Government of India started the economic liberalization policy in 1991. Even though the power at
the center has changed hands, the pace of the reforms has never slackened till date. Before 1991,
changes within the industrial sector in the country were modest to say the least. The sector accounted
for just one-fifth of the total economic activity within the country. The sectoral structure of the
industry has changed, albeit gradually. Most of the industrial sector was dominated by a select band of
family-based conglomerates that had been dominant historically. Post 1991, a major restructuring has
taken place with the emergence of more technologically advanced segments among industrial
companies. Nowadays, more small and medium scale enterprises contribute significantly to the
economy.

By the mid-90s, the private capital had surpassed the public capital. The management system had
shifted from the traditional family based system to a system of qualified and professional managers.
One of the most significant effects of the liberalization era has been the emergence of a strong,
affluent and buoyant middle class with significant purchasing powers and this has been the engine
that has driven the economy since. Another major benefit of the liberalization era has been the shift in
the pattern of exports from traditional items like clothes, tea and spices to automobiles, steel, IT etc.
The ‘made in India’ brand, which did not evoke any sort of loyalty has now become a brand name by
itself and is now known all over the world for its quality. Also, the reforms have transformed the
education sector with a huge talent pool of qualified professionals now available, waiting to conquer
the world with their domain knowledge.

India, after all these years of economic reforms, is at the crossroads. While one road leads India to
economic prosperity and glory, the other road leads it to social inequality. Presently, as India is one of
the fastest growing economies in the world, the social aspects have been ridden roughshod by the
economic benefits. What has been conveniently forgotten or suppressed till date have been the
disparities, mainly the socio-economical issues. This has led to growing discontent among the
population and it has gathered momentum since the reforms began 15 years ago. It will very soon
reach a critical point wherein the very purpose for which the reforms were started, will start to lose
their significance rapidly and throw the country back into the ‘license raj’ and ‘unionist’ era.

The chasm between the rich and the poor has increased so vastly that the rich are just getting richer
and the poor are just getting poorer. The real benefits of the economic reforms have rarely percolated
to the lowest strata of society. Just to illustrate the same with an example, most of the states today
vie with one another to grab a project of any significance, be it chemical, auto or even IT. In doing so,
the benefits they are offering, right from free land to tax sops are being given on a platter. But the
benefits or savings that a company gains from this does not affect the lower strata of management,
but remains in the hands of the top management, thus depriving the former of the economic benefits.
Also, most of the labor laws in the country are outdated and have not kept pace with economic
reforms. Thus, the exploitation of the working class becomes much easier. A classic example is the
BPO industry in our country. While most of them work in the nights, the pressure each employee faces
to deliver results and the working conditions are appalling, to say the least.

The agricultural sector has also seen this disproportionate growth, as it is a field that has been left
high and dry in the pursuit of agricultural reforms. The sector has been opened up to the multi-
nationals, without having evolved a comprehensive cover for our farmers, most of who are poor and
own very little land of their own. A case in point is the spate of farmer suicides that our country has
witnessed in the past few years. The developed countries, which clamour for open-ended policies,
have, in fact, some of the fiercest protection policies when it comes to their agricultural sector.

Small scale industries (SSIs), the heart and soul of many towns and villages, have been virtually
ignored. More than half of them have closed down in the last few years in the face of intense
competition from multi nationals who have unmatched financial and political muscle.

On a parting note, what are essential for India are economic reforms with a social face. The economic
policies and their subsequent reforms must be accompanied by suitable clauses to benefit the
economically weaker sections. Various schemes must be thoroughly scrutinized and efforts must be
made to see that the rewards must reach everyone. Then India will not only be economically
prosperous, but will also forge ahead towards its goal of world dominance.