Inside India’s Growth Strategy With the Chief Economic Advisor | Growth is Good | Ep 26

In this episode of Growth is Good, Rahul sits down with Dr. V. Anantha Nageswaran — India's Chief Economic Advisor — for a candid, wide-ranging conversation on what it will really take for India to grow. From the "missing middle" in India's manufacturing to why 30-year-old policy prescriptions are still relevant today, Dr. Nageswaran brings together decades of thinking — as a scholar, investor, author, and now India's top economic policymaker. 0:00 - Intro & teaser 0:54 - Welcome — India's Chief Economic Advisor 1:22 - Personal origin story: IIM-A, Rajaji & a father's influence 2:41 - Going abroad & seeing India differently 4:45 - East Asia's transformation & India's missing middle 6:23 - "Not the what — the how": India's SME policy failure 8:19 - Same objective, opposite outcome — policy instruments matter 9:10 - "Can India Grow?" — the book's thesis explained 12:17 - Economic Survey on deregulation & direct policy impact 14:07 - Why the survey gets traction: the power of dialogue 15:36 - Consensus building — the underrated engine of reform 17:38 - Evolution of views: the state, markets & industrial policy 21:30 - Is China the cause? History chooses its instruments 24:23 - How to do industrial policy right — lessons & pitfalls 27:20 - Northeast vs Southeast Asia: a natural experiment 29:32 - Which instruments work? Tariffs, QCOs & cost-benefit discipline 31:22 - State capacity — beyond headcount to mindset 35:47 - Entrepreneurial mindset in government & risk-taking 37:44 - Bastiat's seen & unseen — the structural bias against action 39:12 - PLI scheme: a 14-bet portfolio — what counts as success? 42:26 - Cluster-based manufacturing & spillovers 44:02 - Tirupur & the small enterprise that acts like a giant 47:07 - SEZs, Gift City & the sandbox approach to reform 50:57 - Priority 1: Agriculture — food as strategic power 53:33 - Priority 2: Demographics, youth & the social media threat 56:18 - Priority 3: Energy diversification & security 59:13 - The political economy of reform — using crisis as catalyst 1:01:27 - Closing: India's resilience & reasons for optimism About Dr. V. Anantha Nageswaran: Dr. Nageswaran is India's Chief Economic Advisor and co-author of "Can India Grow?" He has taught at several leading institutions, and previously worked in investment management across the US, Switzerland, and Singapore. Growth is Good is a podcast by the Foundation for Economic Development exploring the ideas, people, and policies behind India's growth story. 📌 Subscribe for more conversations with India's leading economic minds. 🔔 Turn on notifications so you never miss an episode.