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Price of the Modi Years
| File:Price of the Modi Years book cover.png Book cover | |
| Author | Aakar Patel |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Westland Books |
Publication date | 2021 |
| Pages | 496 |
| ISBN | 9391234224 |
Price of the Modi Years is a book authored by Aakar Patel, published by Westland Publications Limited (Westland Books) in the year 2021.[1][2][3] The book details the history of India since 2014 when Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister.[4]
Cover[edit]
According to journalist Jawed Naqvi the cover art of the book, depicted "Modi's abysmal performance since 2014". The cover included several graphs that showed the downfall in the indices for democracy, human development index, individual rights, rule of law, press freedom, women’s safety, prosperity, civil liberties, corruption, social cohesion among others.[5]
Content[edit]
The 488 page book published in 2021, elaborates on the human and economic price that India will be paying for the decisions made in the seven years spent under the BJP government since 2014.[6]
Discussing the labour force participation, the author quotes govenment data. He points that the participation in USA is 60%, China 70% while it was only 40% in India, even lower than Pakistan and for the first time lowest in South Asia. India lost a fifth of its workforce that the author credits to the 'staggering incompetence' of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.[6]
After "Make in India" program was launched by Modi, the share of manufacturing in the Indian GDP has reduced from 16% to 13%. Employment in the manufacturing sector have reduced to half after 2016, from 5.1 crore to 2.7 crore. The author quotes PMs former economic adviser Arvind Panagariya that 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat is muddled' with its biggest achievement being more expensive goods for the Indian consumers and protection from external competition for industrialists.[6]
India will pay the price of Modi years, primarily on its economy and society. India is no longer on a path to become next China or a developed nation. Under Modi government the economic trajectory will lead to the continuation of mass poverty, and mass unemployment will become the norm. Majority of national resources and wealth will be controlled by a few, the way it has been happening in past few years.[6] Indian society will remain divided with the minorities forced to ghettoise. Indians will be focussed on the religion, religious differences and violence will be accepted. The use of force has been devolved from the state with encouragement by Hindutva. The mob rule by Hindutva will continue in the foreseeable future.[6]
Reception[edit]
Journalist, Jawed Naqvi in his review for Dawn (newspaper) called the book an "exceptional work" in exposing the performance of the Modi administration. The book "is an archival work with detailed notes and cross-referenced accounts of the prime minister’s shortcomings against core challenges." He called the book a "survey of PM Modi’s resounding incompetence and undiscussed failures on key fronts, juxtaposed with a divisive and potentially doomed project called Hindu rashtra."[5]
Khaled Ahmed, in his book review for Newsweek Pakistan wrote, the book "has emerged as the most comprehensive and reliable account of the time Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spent in power. Written by Aakar Patel, a syndicated columnist who has edited both English and Gujarati newspapers, it details the history of India since 2014."[4]
Author[edit]
Aakar Patel is a journalist and columnist.[7] He has been the chair of Amnesty International India.[8] He is the author of Our Hindu Rashtra, an account of majoritarianism in India.[9][4]
References[edit]
- ↑ Chakravarty, Praveen (4 December 2021). "Price of the Modi Years: A useful guide to Modi govt's track record". Business Standard India. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
- ↑ Ramani, Priya. "Is Uttar Pradesh The Indian State With The Shortest Memory?". BloombergQuint. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
- ↑ Mukherjee, Mitali. "What Is the Price of the Modi Years: In Conversation with Aakar Patel". The Wire. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Ahmed, Khaled (20 December 2021). "A Portrait of Narendra Modi". newsweekpakistan.com. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Naqvi, Jawed (28 December 2021). "Ledger book of Modi's tenure". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Salam, Ziya Us (31 December 2021). "Aakar Patel: 'Modi shrank India's workforce by a fifth'". Frontline. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
Modi shrank India's workforce by a fifth, an act of staggering incompetence for which he has not received due credit.
- ↑ "Journalist and writer Aakar Patel joins as new head of Amnesty International India". The Economic Times. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
- ↑ "Columnist Aakar Patel to head Amnesty International India". The News Minute. 18 June 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
- ↑ "Underscoring the Perils of Majoritarianism". Economic and Political Weekly. 56 (37): 7–8. 5 June 2015.
External Links[edit]
- Aakar, Patel (2021). Price of the Modi Years. Westland. ISBN 9391234224.