India has consistently missed major economic opportunities through delayed reform implementation, according to analysis from Business Standard. The country adopted a mixed economy model after independence while high-flying nations embraced capitalism, and implemented licence-permit raj systems when Japan and Asian Tigers were building manufacturing competitiveness. India failed to capitalize on China's reforms in the late 1980s using the same Asian Tigers model, and even after external bankruptcy in the 1990s, the country didn't complete reforms by freeing factor markets and social sectors.
The delayed reforms resulted in India skipping the entire manufacturing revolution, moving directly into services where state-created business handicaps were fewer. As reported by Business Standard, labour-saving and capital-guzzling manufacturing investments today cannot create jobs comparable to what could have been achieved three decades ago. Entrepreneurs previously circumvented state-imposed hurdles in pursuit of a 'socialist pattern of society,' but current deregulatory reforms will not deliver rich job dividends as they could have in the 1990s and early 2000s.
India's primary education system fails to enable children to master learning abilities needed for tech-mediated future work environments, according to the analysis. Undergraduate education, particularly in non-engineering courses, does not produce graduates with usable skills, instead fostering resentment and activism over employment. Medical education costs over ₹50 lakh for full-fee paying students, creating mercenary doctors focused on investment returns rather than patient care. The solution involves upskilling qualified nurses and physician assistants to perform doctor-level tasks, with technology enabling 90% of MBBS doctor work to be automated.
Agricultural reforms could be achieved by adhering to the Constitution's State List placement, with the Centre's costly minimum support price architecture being the primary barrier. As reported by Business Standard, food security should be managed at the regional level rather than centrally, which has led to rice mountains with partial rotting. The Centre could devolve food and fertiliser subsidy spending to states, allowing many states to accept additional responsibility and build their own buffers.
Reform resistance from vested interests continues to prevent sensible changes from happening, according to the analysis. Medical professionals who invested heavily in degrees oppose expanding competition to nurses and Ayurveda practitioners, while teachers benefiting from regular employment resist home-schooling competition. Farmers used to ultra-subsidised urea production for profitable rice sales through MSPs resist the uncertainties of reforms. The author emphasizes that reforms must become part of everyday conversations with all stakeholders rather than being implemented through stealth methods.
