Time to Write an End to Fantastical ‘India Story’: Pankaj Mishra

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is visiting India this week to, among other things, drum up fresh business for American companies. The magnitude of his task can be judged by the fact that a few days before his arrival, steelmakers Posco and ArcelorMittal SA canceled huge projects in India because of land disputes. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has shown signs of pulling out as well, despite new laws supposedly allowing foreign ownership in the retail sector. The Indian government’s latest desperate attempt to reverse the flight of foreign investment and the fall of the rupee -- by opening up telecommunications to 100 percent foreign ownership -- doesn’t look any more likely to change minds.

Is the “India Story” over, as many commentators have begun to observe? Actually, the more relevant question today is: How did it grow and circulate as widely and rapidly as it did? Unlike China, with which it was routinely and inaptly compared, India never undertook extensive land reforms, nor did it adequately train its workforce or set up large-scale labor-intensive manufacturing -- three crucial enablers in the rise of almost all East Asian economies.