Narasimha Rao INC — Manmohan Singh 1991 liberalisation (India)

Doctrine — stated goals and content

Manmohan Singh 1991 liberalisation — definitive turn from licence- raj to market economy under IMF Structural Adjustment conditionality. Economic school: market-liberal shock-therapy adapted to Indian gradualism — 'half-revolution' (Jagdish Bhagwati). Dated policies: Two rupee devaluations 1 Jul 1991 (9.5%) and 3 Jul 1991 (10.7%); New Industrial Policy 24 Jul 1991 abolishing industrial licensing for all but 18 strategic industries (later trimmed to 6), ending MRTP Act asset limits, opening FDI up to 51% automatic route in 34 industries; Manmohan Singh maiden budget 24 Jul 1991 cutting peak import tariff from 150% toward 85% by 1993-94 then further to 50%; SEBI Act 1992 establishing statutory securities regulator; Securities Contracts Regulation + 1992 Harshad Mehta scam investigation; Dunkel Draft / Uruguay Round signing Apr 1994; Foreign Exchange Regulation Act amendments 1993; full current-account convertibility Aug 1994; NSE commencement Jun 1994. Left-right: Congress centre- left party executing centre-right economic turn — classic case of Nixon-goes-to-China policy substitution. Popularity: May-Jun 1991 election INC 36.5% / 232 seats (minority); 1993 confidence vote won after defections (JMM bribery case later); May 1996 general election INC 28.8% / 140 seats — lost, partly on Babri demolition 6 Dec 1992 during Rao tenure and reform-neutral to -hostile poor/rural response. Coherence: high — fiscal (deficit from 8.4% to 5.9% GDP by 1992-93), industrial (delicensing), trade (tariff cuts), exchange-rate (devaluation + convertibility), and financial (SEBI, NSE) reforms all pointed the same direction.