First published 1999

This paper on the Indian reform process and the implications of the South-East Asian crisis gives an overview of the reform policies in India as well as an assessment of the impacts of these policies, especially in relation to employment and incomes. This assessment is then juxtaposed with the South-East Asian crisis in 1997-1999. The authors discuss to what extent the crisis in South-East Asia has an effect on the reform process in India, not only in terms of changes in the international markets (trade and capital) but also in terms of drawing lessons from the crisis in South-East Asia for the reform process in India. The authors conclude that it is necessary in order to understand the reform processes in India to unbundle the different elements of the economic reform process (liberalization, privatization, fiscal policy, monetary policy) and argue that in order for India to have a stronger and more sustainable development path, the reform process in India should be part of a wider set of economic and social policies including trade policies, industrial policies, and social policies. They conclude that a sound industrial policy is needed to increase the productivity in the Indian economic reform policy which should be applied in line with trade and investment policies. In order to arrive at a sustainable industrial policy a greater attention towards the social relations and the social policies at enterprise and at national level is needed. The authors argue therefore for a gradual process of liberalization and privatization, with th