Book review: Kamal Nayan Kabra, The Black Economy in India: Transition to the Grey Political Economy
| Published date | 01 March 2020 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0019556120907527 |
| Date | 01 March 2020 |
| Subject Matter | Book Reviews |
Book Reviews 135
dynamics. The study of poverty-conflict nexus in the light of Mushahari case of
poverty-related violence in Bihar, the post-conflict face of society as it developed
under Jaiprakash Narain and the developments that followed the adoption of
poverty alleviation programmes by the state have been interpreted. This suggests
the need to examine whether people’s power-based swaraj approach became a
victim of party rivalries and politics of power. The chapter, however, leaves many
questions for the reader to seek answers.
The strength of the book lies in its ability to take the reader into the complex
terrain of multi-dimensional poverty and provide exposure to factors that neces-
sitate a redefinition of the poverty debate. It opens up numerous spaces for further
research to address the challenge of poverty. The interface of poverty and natural
resource management policies and a comparative analysis of decentralisation
policies and practices remain significant issues that could have strengthened the
quest for understanding poverty dynamics. However, not everything is practically
possible to be covered in a single book. Given the vast challenge of poverty, the
reader certainly can get more food for thought and action. The book would be a
valuable addition to the libraries. However, one only wishes that the price was on
the side of the reader to ensure its wider circulation to the concerned Indians and
maybe a reasonably priced Indian edition would be considered.
Dolly Arora
Former Professor, Indian Institute of
Public Administration
E-mail: aroradolly@hotmail.com
Kamal Nayan Kabra, The Black Economy in India: Transition to the Grey
Political Economy. Delhi: Aakar Books, 2019, 273 pp., `895.
DOI: 10.1177/0019556120907527
Through this book—an update of the original version, The Black Economy in
India: Problems and Policies, Delhi (1982)—the author has ventured into one of
India’s most critical and relatively understated political economy challenges.
Estimates of black money in the country range widely anywhere between 7 and
120 per cent of the GDP. The volume seeks to tackle the informal economy in
totality, touching upon the nature of the black economy, the policy responses and
the interconnectedness of the political and business actors involved. It provides a
coherent political economy analytical framework for studying the black economy
in India.
The volume is timely, given the shift in citizen-led public policy discourse
towards unearthing black money in India. In fact, the recent government policies
such as ‘demonetisation’, Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, and the
Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Amendment Act of 2016 have been
expressly showcased as the government’s resolve to tackle black money. This
book attempts to document, with success, the collusion of political and economic
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