Trade and FDI Related Reforms in the States, 1991?2007: The Case of Maharashtra

Exploring how the state of Maharashtra has fared in changing its trade-related policies as a response to economic reforms between 1991 and 2007, this study includes an examination of alterations in state-level tax policies, initiatives to attract foreign or domestic investors in the state, export promotion initiatives, and development initiatives affecting business. It also discusses the changing role of business in the state, the bureaucratic mechanism working toward implementation of policies, the role of political parties, and the role of chief minister as a leader in framing and implementing trade-related policies. Two case studies are included in the analysis: one on automobiles and the auto-components industry, and another on the pharmaceutical industry. They exhibit how all these factors have worked in Maharashtra in the growth and development of the sectors. The brief policy prescription at the end will assist policy makers, investors, and businesses alike in learning from the past.

Gitanjali Sen is a fellow at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), working on affirmative action in higher education. Her areas of interests include education, affirmative action, returns to education, child labor, status of marginal communities, corruption and socio-economic impact evaluation of public programs. She is a former lead economist at Comat Technologies, where she worked with Poverty Action Lab in socio-economic impact evaluation of technological interventions in the Public Distribution System. She received her PhD in economics from University of Missouri–Columbia.