Assessing the Fiscal Capacity of Indian Governments

This article assesses the record of different post-reform governments in meeting their fiscal targets and improving both delivery and finances. A variety of indices are constructed, and consistency checks devised to measure relative performance. No government has achieved its targets, but the Congress Party has had the best record in keeping its promises, and reducing deficits. The effect of the growth dividend on lowering government debt and deficits is established. But the failure of the government finances to improve proportionately with this suggests the need for further improvement in expenditure management.