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Modi's rule so far: India hoped for a Shinzo Abe. It got a lost decade

Narendra Modi's five-year term wasn't supposed to end with families cutting back on biscuits and toothpaste.

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Modi didn’t become India’s Abe, but he did preside over half a Japanese-style lost decade.

Bloomberg

4 min read Last Updated : May 12 2019 | 11:38 AM IST

Five years ago, I wrote that Narendra Modi could be India’s Shinzo Abe. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

The chief minister of Gujarat state had just been chosen by his party to become the next prime minister if it won the popular vote. Writing for Reuters then, I predicted he could lift the country’s drooping economy, just as Abe had been attempting to do in Japan.

To get an idea of how badly Modi has undershot expectations, look at India’s largest maker of consumer staples. Hindustan Unilever Ltd. recently reported March quarter revenue growth of 7%, the weakest in 18

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