Sujit Kumar Roy
Published: 2015
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The stellar performance of the Indian economy, being widely publicized as the success of the democratic setup of the country, has drawn admirable attention from the rest of the world. But vis-à-vis this tinsel growth story, its democratic deficit also makes itself manifest in the rising number of the underclass who have not benefited from this growth. Even with 11 Five Year Plans, India is still to ensure food, drinking water, basic education and healthcare for all. On the other hand, despite a near double-digit growth, the Indian economy is on the throes of infrastructural deficits, posing serious threat to its growth potential. Sustained economic growth requires investments in critical infrastructure such as roads, railways, airports and even swanky malls and hotels for its super rich. Which way should India go? This paper explores the contradiction of India's economic growth which has failed to touch the lives of its poor and suggests that much of its policy dilemma can be resolved in the light of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) -- the widely accepted benchmark for acceptable level of poverty, hunger, child mortality and other parameters of human well being.