Vibha Mathur – författare

Prior to the launching of economic reforms in 1991, foreign trade of India suffered from strict bureaucratic controls and discretionary regulations. With a view to simplify procedures and reduce controls, the Government made a Statement on Trade Policy in Parliament on August 13, 1991, ushering a new era in the foreign trade policy of India. Instead of controls and regulations, the focus shifted to promotion and development of foreign trade. The present book provides a comprehensive view of the changes in India's foreign trade during the post-liberalisation period. It also traces policy developments with regard to direct foreign investment during the reforms period.

The poor performance of PSEs started to be reflected in low profits and in some cases mounting losses year after year. Hence, privatisation of public sector enterprises is a part of the economic reforms process initiated in 1991. In dismantling the public sector, India has adopted a gradualist approach. The slow pace of privati-sation has disappointed the public in general. This book traces the philosophy and growth of PSEs in India and describes recent policy measures for their privatisation. Hurdles being faced by the Government in this gigantic task are also set forth.

While the Indian economy has performed well in terms of growth rate of GDP in the recent past, its performance in the form of human development indicators has been unsatisfactory. Social sectors like health, family welfare, education, employment, women empowerment, and rural infrastructure have lagged behind in the race for better standard of living. This book examines various issues associated with social uplift of Indian masses. It explains various schemes and programmes of the government to improve the living conditions of the disadvantaged groups of Indian society and comments on their implementation.

After Independence in 1947, India followed, for about 30 years (1950-80), a development pattern which laid strong emphasis on centralised planning, government ownership of basic and key industries, excessive regulation and control of private enterprise, trade protectionism through tariff and non-tariff barriers and a cautious and selective approach towards foreign capital. It was a quota, permit and license regime all the way. The establishment of WTO in 1995 was the foremost achievement. This book explains the key reform measures undertaken in various sectors of the Indian economy since 1991 in the context of the establishment of WTO. It examines the rationale, contents, and impact of economic reforms and puts in perspective the emerging lessons for the future.

In recognition of the growing importance of foreign trade in the Indian economy, this book provides a comprehensive description and analysis of post-Independence developments in India's foreign trade and allied sectors with focus on post-1991 period. The book covers the following specific topics: Changing Pattern of International Trade; Pre- and Post-Independence Developments in India's Foreign Trade; Compositional and Directional Shifts in Exports from India; Compositional and Policy Shifts in Imports into India; Foreign Trade Policy in Recent Years; Rationalisation, Simplification and Moderation of Customs Tariff Regime; Current Account Convertibility and Flows; Capital Account Convertibility and Flows; Exchange Rate Determination and Management; Foreign Exchange Reserves; External Debt and Aid; Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Foreign Portfolio Investment. The book provides special coverage to the following topics: (a) Globalisation and International Trade, (b) Global Economic Crisis and International Trade, (c) India's Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs), (d) World Trade Organisation (WTO) and India's Foreign Trade and (e) Global Economic Crisis and the Indian Economy.

The resource base of a country consists of (a) human resources, (b) non-renewable resources which are an endowment of nature and whose total size gets depleted with time and (c) renewable resources which can be continuously created and whose base can be expanded through human efforts. Economic planning is concerned with the effective and optimal utilisation of the potential resources of an economy. This is particularly so in the context of underdeveloped countries which are striving to raise the standard of living of the masses. In fact, planning is a process aiming not merely at the best utilisation of material resources but also at the development of human faculties and institutional framework suitable to the needs and aspirations of the people. The establishment of Planning Commission in 1950 heralded a new era in the economic history of India. It makes an assessment of the material, capital and human resources of the country, including technical personnel, and investigates the possibilities of augmenting such of these resources as are found to be deficient in relation to the nation's requirements. It, then, formulates a Plan for the most effective and balanced utilisation of the country's resources. India's First Five Year Plan was launched on April 1, 1951. Since then, ten Five Year Plans have been completed and the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-08 to 2011-12) is underway. Part I of the book deals with human and natural resources of India, principles of economic planning, institutional framework of economic planning in India, and assessment of India's experience with economic planning. Part II provides summary of each Five Year Plan (First Plan to Eleventh Plan) under the following 13 common theme headings: Plan at a Glance; Agriculture and Rural Development; Industry and Infrastructure; Mineral Resources; Electricity and Other Renewable Energy Sources; Urban Development and Housing; Transport and Communications; Employment and Labour Welfare; Health, Family Planning and Nutrition; Education, Training and Skill Formation; Science and Technology; Social Welfare; Balanced Regional Development; Part III contains sector-wise time-series statistics on the Indian economy from 1950-51 to 2009-10; Part IV of the book comprises glossary of economic planning and a list of English equivalents of select Hindi terms used in Plan Documents.

For about 40 years (1950-90), foreign trade of India suffered from strict bureaucratic and discretionary controls. Beginning 1991, the Government of India introduced a series of reforms to liberalise and globalise the Indian economy. Reforms in the external sector of India were intended to integrate the Indian economy with the world economy. The major trade policy changes in the post-1991 period have included simplification of procedures, removal of quantitative restrictions, and substantial reduction in the tariff rates. India's approach to openness has been cautious, contingent on achieving certain preconditions to ensure an orderly process of liberalisation and ensuring macroeconomic stability. Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) for the period 2015-20 announced by the Government on 1 April 2015 visualises increase in India's exports of merchandise and services from US$ 465.9 billion in 2013-14 to approximately US$ 900 billion by 2019-20 and to raise India's share in world exports from 2 percent to 3.5 percent. The products wherein India has the maximum presence in international market in terms of export share are spices, marine products, precious and semi-precious stones and textiles. Recent trends, however, indicate that the commodity structure of India's exports has slowly begun to shift towards higher technology intensive manufactures. According to Trade Profiles, 2014 of the World Trade Organization (WTO), India's share in total world exports was 1.66 percent in 2013 whereas its share in total world imports was 2.47 percent for the same year. The main destinations of India's exports are European Union, United States, United Arab Emirates, China and Singapore. The greatest challenge facing the Indian economy is to enhance its productivity and competitiveness so as to achieve a sustained growth in exports of goods and services.