The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics Online

Four or arguably five phases can be identified in India's post-independence economic experience. The first phase in which institutions were put in place and policies were relatively liberal saw moderate growth, but this was stifled by command and control policies in the second phase. More recent liberalization has seen renewed increased in the growth levels, and it is argued that this should continue beyond the 2008–9 economic crisis. However manufacturing, especially labour-intensive sectors, continue to grow slowly, growth is heavily reliant on the service sector, and a disproportionately large workforce remains engaged in inefficient agricultural production.