Economic Reforms 1991

'In 1991, we faced both an economic as well as external relations crisis'

Saran says that India must shore up relations in its neighbourhood before it can aim for global leadership and that it must not succumb to pressure from the United States

The economic reforms paradox: A few states dominate FDI inflows

Just seven states accounted for nearly 82% of all FDI equity inflows to India from January 2000 to March 2026

Sector-specific reforms: A road less travelled

Without a rethink on the very meaning and scope of reforms, the solutions to our most important problems will remain endlessly out of reach

Wholesale changes have not happened in civil services: M Veerappa Moily

There is a pronounced tendency to centralise now… Centralisation will not take the country forward, either socially or economically, he said

Ideas of 1991 reforms started emerging by the late 1970s: Nitin Desai

Nitin Desai says India's reform ideas predated 1991, but the bigger challenge now is boosting manufacturing and new businesses to create jobs and move workers out of agriculture

Govts changed, liberalisation consensus endured, at varying pace

Governments both at the Centre and in states have occasionally been voted out for their inability to sell the reforms to the electorate

Fruits of reforms are often reaped by later governments: Shankar Acharya

Shankar Acharya says that structural constraints need to be addressed for India to become an advanced economy by 2047

1991 liberalisation made a break with the past, says C Rangarajan

C Rangarajan says reforms are a continuous process and we need new measures to tackle new challenges

Best of BS Opinion: Modinomics vs Manmohanomics is not a zero sum game

Today's opinions examine P Chidambaram's critique of the Modi government's economic record, the CJP's political dilemma, Imran Khan's global support and the changing advertising landscape

'Neither Rao nor Singh could have brought in the 1991 reforms alone'

P Chidambaram recalls how Rao and Manmohan Singh shaped the 1991 reforms and argues India now needs greater competition, openness and a revived WTO

1991 reforms demonstrated confidence that we could compete: Rakesh Mohan

Rakesh Mohan talks about the trajectory of India's economic development, why the reforms could be pulled off as quickly as they were, and what India can do now to boost manufacturing

How Indian economy has transformed since the landmark 1991 reforms

By 2025-26 the primary sector's share had roughly halved to about 18%, the tertiary sector had surged to some 56% and industry sat almost exactly where it began, at around 25%

35 years of liberalisation: How IT sector became India's dollar engine

India's IT industry was built not just on Y2K, but on the 1991 reforms that opened capital, technology, telecom and global markets, creating a powerful engine of exports and foreign exchange

We ducked more basic reforms because of success of 1991 talks: N K Singh

N K Singh recalls the circumstances under which India liberalised its economy. He discusses how India can negotiate a highly uncertain world now, while retaining its growth momentum

Datanomics: West Asia conflict and India's petroleum trade diversification

India's development ambitions will depend not on promises alone, but on sustained reforms, better-designed welfare, inclusive products, capable leadership and accountability

1991 reforms were born of compulsion, not choice: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Adds economy became top of agenda only circa 2000

'India began drug discovery before China, but China has moved years ahead'

India's pharma industry must pivot from global leadership in generics to innovation, backed by stronger policy, R&D funding and regulatory reforms, says Satish Reddy

Reforms@35: From UTI monopoly and assured returns to SIP investment boom

How the continuing reforms in the MF space have created an over ₹82 trillion powerhouse

1991 marked a paradigm shift in industrial, trade policy: Jairam Ramesh

Jairam Ramesh says the 1991 reforms transformed India's economy, but reviving private investment is now the country's biggest economic policy challenge

Big Shift after 1991: Only 7 of 30 Sensex companies still remain in index

The dropout rate of companies in index surged in post-liberalisation economy, even as Indian equities joined the global asset pool, with the entry of foreign institutional investors in the late 1990s