After regaining independence in 1947, India immediately adopted a firmly democratic political system. The famines of the British era disappeared, along with economic stagnation; despite a recent dip, India's growth remains among the fastest in the world. Yet, Dreze and Sen argue, there have been failures both to foster participatory growth and to make good use of the public resources generated by economic growth to enhance people's living conditions.

This book presents a powerful analysis not only of India's deprivations and inequalities, but also of the restraints on addressing them - and of the possibility of change through democratic practice.