How India's Economy Works

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to former secretary with the Ministry of Agriculture Siraj Hussain about the rapid growth of India's poultry sector and how it has outpaced other agricultural sectors like fisheries and livestock. They discuss the rise of the integrator model in poultry farming, the challenges and benefits of contract farming, the poultry sector versus other crops, how supply regulation in poultry helps stabilize prices and much more. ABOUT SIRAJ HUSSAIN Siraj Hussain joined the IAS in 1979 and served the Govt for 37 years. He has worked as the Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing and as Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture. At present, he is Chairman of the Board of Directors of National e-Repository Limited, a director on the board of Shri Renuka Sugars Limited and also a trustee of World Food Programme Trust for India. He writes regularly on agriculture and food policy for various reputed publications. For more of our coverage check out ⁠⁠thecore.in⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Subscribe to our Newsletter⁠⁠ Follow us on:⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Linkedin⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Youtube

In this episode, Raghavan Srinivasan, journalist and former editor for The Hindu Business Line, talks about the story of Coca-Cola's entry into the Indian market. He highlights how global brands like Coca-Cola and Pepsi, after initially trying to dominate the Indian market, had to adapt to local preferences, even reintroducing beloved brands like Thums Up and Limca. The conversation underscores how consumer-driven markets often teach lessons that regulations cannot, with companies—both foreign and local—innovating to meet the unique demands of Indian consumers, illustrating the importance of localisation for success in India’s dynamic market. For more of our coverage check out ⁠thecore.in⁠ ⁠Subscribe to our Newsletter⁠ Follow us on:⁠Twitter⁠ | ⁠Instagram⁠ | ⁠Facebook⁠ | ⁠Linkedin⁠ | ⁠Youtube

In this episode, Puja Mehra talks to economist Ila Patnaik about the complex challenges India faces as it strives to compete with China's export dominance. They talk about the uncompetitive infrastructure, higher labor and energy costs, and irrational tariff structures that hinder India’s manufacturing sector. Patnaik discusses the impact of China's post-COVID economic slowdown, its focus on exports, and the implications for India. She argues that India must address its internal economic issues before considering protectionist measures, and emphasises the need for a comprehensive strategy to counter China's export-driven model.ABOUT ILA PATNAIKDr Ila Patnaik is the Chief Economist at the Aditya Birla Group. In 2014 she was the Principal Economic Advisor to the Government of India. Her research interests include international macroeconomics, finance and emerging economy business cycles and she has been published in journals such as the Journal of International Money and Finance, the World Bank Economic Review, International Finance, and in collected volumes. She has also been a regular columnist with The Print and co-authored (with Bhupender Yadav) the book The Rise of the BJP: The Making of the World's Largest Political Party. For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this episode, Puja Mehra talks to economist Payal Malik about the impact of big tech companies like Google and Meta on market competition in India and the recent antitrust ruling against google. They explore how these giants dominate industries through data extraction, stifling innovation and harming suppliers, the need for new regulations to address anti-competitive behavior, the role of digital gatekeepers in shaping the future of the digital economy and much more.ABOUT PAYAL MALIKPayal Malik is a public policy economist, with expertise in competition law and policy, digital markets, antitrust litigation, technology policy, and economic regulation of network industries. She has been an Economic Adviser and Head of the Economics Division at the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for ten years between 2012-2023, where she played a key role in advising the Commission on the economics of competition law across an expansive range of markets and led interfaces between the CCI, sector regulators, government, industry and the international competition community.She was the Convener of the Working Group on New Age Economy and Bigdata constituted by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India (GoI), for the competition law review committee (CLRC). She was also nominated as a member of the task force of the GoI formulating the e-commerce policy of India and member of a sub group of the Committee on Digital Competition law (CDCL), devising an ex-ante regulatory mechanism for digital markets through a separate legislation.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, Puja Mehra talks to Dr. Shruti Rajagopalan about the historical context of the 1991 Economic Liberalisation of India. She illustrates how the economy in india worked through the manufacture of a bicycle and goes on to explain the impact of those economic reforms, the careful planning that went into it, the people who brought it to fruition, the political turmoil at the time and much more.About Dr. Shruti Rajagopalan: Dr. Shruti Rajagopalan is a Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, where she leads the Indian Political Economy Program and Emergent Ventures India. She is also a Fellow at the Classical Liberal Institute at NYU School of Law and an Innovation Fellow with Schmidt Futures. Dr. Rajagopalan’s research interests include law and economics, public choice theory, and constitutional economics, with her work published in various academic journals and media outlets such as The New York Times, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, Project Syndicate, Bloomberg, Real Clear Politics, Mint, The Hindu: Business Line, and The Indian Express. She hosts the Ideas of India podcast and writes the Get Down and Shruti substack on Indian political economy and culture.SHOW NOTES(01:04) Interview starts(03:57) The humble bicycle(06:49) The license stack for starting a bike shop(13:32) License convolution(19:37) Wartime controls led to central planning(22:44) How would License Raj unravel(25:17) How the 1991 political crisis came to be(27:57) Finance ministers of the time(30:14) The Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi and it consequences(34:15) The team that liberalised India(36:09) The Devaluation of the Rupee(39:22) Fixing Imports and Exports(41:53) The Careful Planning of the Economic Reforms(47:50) The Advantage of Small Firms(50:46) FDIs and foreign expertise(54:10) The far reaching impacts of the Economic Reforms(58:02) The Case Study of India as a blueprint for Economic ReformsFor more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, Puja Mehra talks to Vijay Singh Chauhan about the complexities of government budgeting and fiscal management in India. They discuss discrepancies in GDP numbers, government borrowing, the fiscal deficit, the importance of transparency, statistical skills, and public input in the budget-making process, and much more.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, Puja Mehra and economist Amol Agrawal discuss the history and evolution of banking in India, the establishment of princely state banks, their merger into the State Bank of India, the emergence of new banking forms and much more.ABOUT AMOL AGRAWALAmol Agrawal is a teacher of economics having taught economics at Ahmedabad University and now currently visiting faculty at Meghnad Desai Academy of Economics (MDAE). His research focuses on economics and he has many published papers and articles. His blog Mostly Economics is very popular and is a respected resource on economics. He has also written a book History of Private Banking in South Canara District(1906-69).  For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to economist Nikhil Gupta about the financial situation of households (including weakening income growth, growing debt, and reliance on non-mortgage personal loans), the intricate relationship between the household and corporate sectors, recent trends in savings, investments, and borrowings, and much more.ABOUT NIKHIL GUPTANikhil Gupta is Senior Vice President at Motilal Oswal Financial Services. His work is in macroeconomics and tracking India's economy.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to economist Amol Agrawal about the history of private banks in India, how the RBI was setup, banking regulation through the years, the beginnings of some of India's most iconic private banks and much more. ABOUT AMOL AGRAWALAmol Agrawal is a teacher of economics having taught economics at Ahmedabad University and now currently visiting faculty at Meghnad Desai Academy of Economics (MDAE). His research focuses on economics and he has many published papers and articles. His blog Mostly Economics is very popular and is a respected resource on economics. He has also written a book History of Private Banking in South Canara District(1906-69).  For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to economist Rathin Roy about India's economic growth and challenges, the country's economic transformation, the need for inclusive development, the growing disconnect between the masses and the growth process and much more.ABOUT RATHIN ROYRathin Roy was the Director and CEO of the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP) in New Delhi. He has previously worked as an Economic Diplomat and Policy Advisor at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), with postings in London, New York, Kathmandu and Brasilia. He has also served as an Economic Adviser with the Thirteenth Finance Commission, New Delhi, in the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government of India. He was part of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council and was a member of the last pay commission that recommended pay hikes for central government employees as well as being a member of the selection panels that chose the two governors of the RBI. His policy interests and research has mainly focused on fiscal and macroeconomic issues pertinent to human development in developing and emerging economies.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to former secretary with the Ministry of Agriculture Siraj Hussain about agriculture policy, managing food inflation, minimum support price, wheat procurement, nuanced policies that balance farmer interests with consumer needs and much more.ABOUT SIRAJ HUSSAINSiraj Hussain joined the IAS in 1979 and served the Govt for 37 years. He has worked as the Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing and as Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture. At present, he is Chairman of the Board of Directors of National e-Repository Limited, a director on the board of Shri Renuka Sugars Limited and also a trustee of World Food Programme Trust for India. He writes regularly on agriculture and food policy for various reputed publications.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to economists Maitreesh Ghatak and Rishabh Kumar about poverty estimation in India, historical trends in poverty reduction, defining the poverty line, poverty in rural areas vs urban areas and much more.ABOUT MAITREESH GHATAKMaitreesh Ghatak is Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics since 2004. He is an elected Fellow of the British Academy and a Fellow of the International Economic Association. His main areas of research interest are development economics, public economics, and the economics of organisations. He is a co-editor of Economica since 2016 and is also in the editorial board of several journals. He has served as the Lead Academic of the International Growth Centre’s (IGC) India–Bihar programme and as an external member of the Research Committee of The World Bank. He is a founding member of several research networks: Theoretical Research in Development (ThReD), Economics of Social Sector Organisations (ESSO), and Non-profits, Governments, and Organizations (NGO) and writes regularly on economic, political and policy issues for a broader audience with a special focus on India in various newspapers, magazines, and blogs. ABOUT RISHABH KUMARRishabh Kumar is currently assistant professor of economics at The University of Massachusetts Boston.  He writes about current & historical inequality/poverty, economic development and political economy. He has previously taught at  California State University, San Bernardino and worked in government for New York City’s Department of Finance. He received his PhD in Economics from The New School for Social Research in May 2017.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to Chakshu Roy about challenges faced by members of parliament in contributing to economic policymaking, the importance of research support, the limitations of the parliamentary system and much more.ABOUT CHAKSHU ROYChakshu Roy is an expert on the rules and procedures of Parliament and its functioning. He anchors programs to strengthen the capacity of legislators at the centre and state level. He supports civil society organisations to engage with legislatures and has trained journalist groups about tracking the functioning of Parliament and State Vidhan Sabhas. He has also been involved in setting up the first comprehensive database of state legislation in the country. He writes regularly on legislative issues and about the strengthening of the institution of Parliament.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to Vijay Singh Chauhan about streamlining cargo clearance processes in India, the challenges faced during COVID-19 in cargo clearance and much more.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to Rajesh Vetcha about Airports, how they are run, how the systems that allow for the functioning of airports work, passenger charters and much more.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to economist and deputy director at Carnegie India Suyash Rai about manufacturing policy in India, Apple's planned iPhone manufacture in India, whether PLI schemes actually work, industrial policy in India and much more.ABOUT SUYASH RAISuyash Rai is a deputy director and fellow at Carnegie India. His research focuses on the political economy of economic reforms, and the performance of public institutions in India. His current research looks at the financial sector, the fiscal system, and the infrastructure sector.For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

In this conversation, journalist Puja Mehra speaks to Former Finance Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Haseeb Drabu about the inner workings of the Kashmir economy, opportunities for businesses in the valley, what the abrogation of Article 370 meant for businesses and much more.ABOUT HASEEB DRABUHaseeb Drabu is an Indian politician, economist and the former member of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly. He was elected as Finance Minister of Jammu and Kashmir in the BJP-PDP coalition government from 2015 to 2018. While he was the finance minister of J&K, Jammu and Kashmir reached Rank 7 in fiscal management. As a state finance minister he was also an active member of the GST council in its phase of formulating and introducing the new tax regime in India. For more of our coverage check out thecore.inSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube

Join journalist Puja Mehra as she talks to Economists, Academics and Researchers and breaks down one story to give you all the context you need - historical, macro-economic and policy-related - to understand how it fits into the larger picture of India's economy. For more of our coverage check out thecore.in--Support the Core Report--Join and Interact anonymously on our whatsapp channelSubscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on:Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Linkedin | Youtube