The essays in this volume are written by leading economists working on the Indian economy. They collectively emphasize the importance of policies and institutions for sustained growth and poverty reduction stressing that the success of sector-specific policies is vitally dependent on the nature of markets and the functioning of institutions such as those charged with regulating and overseeing critical sectors. Individual contributions assess the role of Indian government policy in key sectors and emphasize the policies required to ensure improvements in these sectors. The first section discusses aspects of the macro economy; the second deals with agriculture and social sectors; the third with jobs and how labor markets function in agriculture industry and services; and the fourth with infrastructure services specifically electricity telecommunications and transport. The essays are drawn from the most influential papers presented in recent years on Indian economic policy at the Stanford Center for International Development.

Machine generated contents note: 1. Introduction Nicholas C. Hope, Anjini Kochar, Roger Noll and T. N. Srinivasan; Part I. The Macro Economy: 2. Federalism and economic development in India: an assessment Nirvikar K. Singh and T. N. Srinivasan; 3. India and China: trade and foreign investment Arvind Panagariya; 4. Financial sector reforms and monetary policy: the Indian experience Rakesh Mohan; Part II. Institutional Reforms: Agriculture and Education: 5. Land reform, decentralized governance and rural development in West Bengal Pranab Bardhan and Dilip Mookherjee; 6. Market-driven agricultural growth: contrasting experiences in Punjab and Rajastham Peter Hazell, Abhijit Sharma and Laurence Smith; 7. India's higher education opportunity Naushad Forbes; 8. Improving the quality of rural primary schools: an evaluation of a computer aided learning program in south India Verghese Jacob, Anjini Kochar and Suresh Reddy; Part III. Employment, Industrial Structure and Poverty: 9. The missing middle Anne O. Kreuger; 10. Some aspects of the trends in employment and unemployment in Bihar and Kerala since the seventies T. N. Srinivasan and Treb Allen; 11. Size matters: urban growth and poverty in India 1983-2005 Peter Lanjouw and Rinku Murgai; Part IV. Infrastructure: Electricity and Transportation: 12. An assessment of Indian telecommunications reform Roger Noll and Scott Wallsten; 13. Managing demand-side economic and political constraints on electricity industry restructuring process Frank A. Wolak; 14. Moving India: the political economy of transport sector reform Nirvikar K. Singh and Jessica S. Wallack.