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How India's Economy Works

How India's Economy Works

By: The Core
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Summary

 Join journalist Puja Mehra as she breaks down one story to give you all the context you need to understand how it fits into the larger picture of India's economy.The Core Politics & Government
Episodes
  • The Productivity Slowdown Bedevilling India’s Growth Story

    The Productivity Slowdown Bedevilling India’s Growth Story
    May 13 2026
    In this episode of How India’s Economy Works, journalist and author Puja Mehra speaks with economists Arjun Jayadev and Amit Basole, authors of the CSIE working paper India's Labour Productivity Puzzle, about a troubling trend beneath India’s headline growth numbers: a sharp slowdown in labour productivity since 2017.India remains one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies, employment levels have risen, and female labour force participation has increased. Yet, according to their latest research, workers today are producing far less than they would have if earlier productivity trends had continued. The conversation explores why this matters for wages, living standards, investment, and the broader health of the economy.They discuss the rise of surplus labour, the difference between employment and productive jobs, and why much of the recent increase in work — especially for women — may reflect economic distress rather than opportunity. The episode also examines weak private investment, manufacturing stagnation, structural transformation, the limits of formalisation, and whether policies like infrastructure spending, digitalisation, and production-linked incentives are truly improving productivity.The discussion raises a deeper question: can India sustain high growth if output per worker remains stagnant? Tune in for insights on why India’s growth story may be masking a deeper productivity crisis — and what it means for jobs, wages, and the future of the economyCHAPTERS(00:00) Introduction(01:23) India’s Labour Productivity Slowdown Since 2017(05:05) Why India’s Productivity Crisis Stands Out Globally(09:32) How Growth Can Rise Despite Stagnant Productivity(10:58) Surplus Labour and the Rise of Low-Quality Employment(14:02) The Manufacturing Productivity Puzzle(15:08) Low Wages, Weak Productivity, and Employer Incentives(17:24) The Link Between Productivity and Wages(18:35) Women’s Employment and Economic Distress(20:40) The “Intensification of Dualism” in India’s Economy(21:45) Formalisation Versus Informal Labour Expansion(22:14) PLI Schemes, Policy Dynamism, and Missing Counterfactuals(25:30) Cash Transfers and Structural Transformation(27:00) Why Digitalisation Does Not Automatically Improve Productivity(28:55) Conclusion and Final ThoughtsFor more of our coverage check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thecore.in⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to our Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow us on:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ |⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ |⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ |⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Linkedin⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ |⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube
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    30 mins
  • When Growth Doesn’t Reach Workers — The Hidden Stress in India’s Labour Market

    When Growth Doesn’t Reach Workers — The Hidden Stress in India’s Labour Market
    Apr 29 2026

    In this episode, journalist and author Puja Mehra speaks with Rosa Abraham, economist and one of the authors of the State of Working India 2026 report, about the growing stress in India’s labour market, highlighted by recent worker protests in Noida. They discuss why even formal sector jobs are no longer guaranteeing wage growth, with real earnings stagnating—and in some cases declining—over the past decade.

    Abraham explains how this is not a cyclical slowdown but a deeper structural issue, driven by weak productivity, misallocation of capital, and the absence of a strong small and mid-sized enterprise base (crucial sector that invests in workers). They also examine why higher education is failing to translate into better jobs, leaving many young graduates unemployed or underemployed.

    Are current policies missing the bigger picture? What does this mean for India’s demographic dividend?

    Tune in for a sharp look at why economic growth isn’t reaching workers—and the risks of ignoring it.


    CHAPTERS

    (00:00) Introduction

    (00:14) Worker Protests in Noida

    (01:20) Stagnant Wages in India

    (02:30) Falling Graduate Salaries

    (04:27) What Low Wage Growth Reflects

    (07:39) Why Minimum Wages Aren’t Enforced

    (08:31) Youth Unemployment Explained

    (12:01) India’s Demographic Dividend at Risk

    (15:00) Demand vs Supply Side Problem

    (18:16) Is It a Mindset Problem?

    (20:28) Role of Public vs Private Sector

    (22:09) Fixing the Jobs Ecosystem

    (23:58) Risks of Inaction

    (27:06) No Easy Solutions


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    29 mins
  • The RBI’s Losing Battle for the Rupee

    The RBI’s Losing Battle for the Rupee
    Apr 15 2026

    In this episode, journalist and author Puja Mehra speaks with Rajeswari Sengupta, Economist and Associate Professor at Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), about the recent volatility in the rupee and the Reserve Bank of India’s response to it. They discuss how global shocks—from the West Asia conflict to sustained capital outflows—have exposed deeper structural vulnerabilities in India’s external sector.

    Sengupta explains how the rupee’s weakness is not just cyclical but rooted in fundamentals, including rising import dependence, especially on energy, and weakening foreign capital inflows. Against this backdrop, they examine the RBI’s increasingly aggressive intervention to stabilise the currency.

    But are these measures addressing volatility, or attempting to influence the level of the exchange rate itself? What does this mean for the rupee’s role as a market-driven price, and for India’s ambitions of greater financial openness?

    Tune in for insights into the tensions between currency management and market forces, and what it means for the future of India’s exchange rate framework.


    CHAPTERS

    (00:00) Pressures on the Rupee

    (01:09) West Asia War Impact

    (02:30) Energy Import Dependencies

    (04:32) Sustained Capital Outflows

    (06:14) Financing Current Account Deficit

    (08:03) RBI’s Intervention Methods

    (10:14) Offshore Arbitrage and Banks

    (11:58) Unprecedented Regulatory Measures

    (13:16) Impact on Indian Banks

    (15:42) Risks of Policy Flip-Flops

    (16:59) Cost of Hedging Exposure

    (21:20) Value of Market Speculation

    (26:38) Rupee as Shock Absorber

    (31:07) Recommendations for Future Policy


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    37 mins
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