FROM THE MEDIA
This is a must read book for every civil servant of India.​​
AMITABH KANT
Former CEO, NITI Aayog,​​
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There have been many scholarly works on analysing why India has not been able to deliver on its promise of development for all. Where Muralidharan’s book stands out is that it is not just a diagnosis of the problems, but is a data-backed, pragmatic guide on how to solve them. The book is an extremely easy read.
AUNINDYO CHAKRAVARTY,
The Tribune​​
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Karthik Muralidharan’s new book argues that the crucial barrier to faster development (in India) is a lack of state capacity. In his 800-page tome, Mr Muralidharan lays out fixes with details about how the Indian system works and could be improved.
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The Economist​​
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Karthik Muralidharan’s monumental work, Accelerating India’s Development, makes an important contribution by using empirical data and conceptual frameworks to support building a more effective and responsive state to meet the aspirations of a 21st-century India. This book is everything that Indian policymakers need to ensure that they rise to this moment
in India’s historical evolution.
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HARSH PANT,
Open Magazine​
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Amid India's socio-economic shift, Karthik Muralidharan's new book shines as a guide for the nation's trajectory.
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KUMAR CHELLAPPAN,
The Daily Pioneer
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It is no stretch to say that Accelerating India’s Development is one of the most important books written about the political economy of India’s development.
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MILAN VAISHNAV,
Director, South Asia Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
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Muralidharan's twin roles as an academic scholar and a policy advisor ensures that the book offers not just analysis but also specific reform suggestions over a wide range of public policy fronts. The result is a masterclass in development economics. Its multiple insights are accessible to a broader audience, because it is not written clannishly for a select few.
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NIRANJAN RAJADHYAKSHA,
Reviewing for the Mint
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The book is worth reading for the first half of most chapters alone — they are richly researched, lucidly written and are a very accessible introduction to the state of developmental policy in India, with global cross-references. It enables a practitioner to quickly get a lay of the land, and helps a researcher put literature into context.
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PARTHA MUKHOPADHYAY,
The Indian Express
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This, in many ways, is a remarkable book. It’s neatly organised into bite-sized essays that are easy to digest, with each chapter building on those before it to collectively contribute to the grand argument. Most importantly, unlike so many books of its ilk, instead of just focusing on what is wrong with the Indian state, it offers implementable solutions as to how to make it better.
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RAHUL MATTHAN,
The Mint
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Overall, it is a must read for bureaucrats and policy analysts, recommended for politicians, and worthwhile for professionals and others with even a cursory interest in the politics and economics of Indian development.
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V KUMARASWAMY,
The Business Standard
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