The view of how we are doing as a nation depends on which side of the political divide you are on. The further you go in either direction, the starker the difference between reality and perception. When I look at various metrics and their directions, the conclusion that I come to is this: India is doing much better than before on poverty, inequality, growth, per capita income, nutrition and digitisation. It is on a path of compounding that will really show results in the next decade. But there are deep problems that are holding back a move to the next gear to pick up speed. These include deep endemic corruption, lack of judicial reforms, dysfunctional municipal corporations, and a compliance and inspector raj that adds layers of costs in terms of both money and time.
