Over the past month or so, I have begun to read India’s post-Independence history. The objective was to get a better understanding of India’s political past, so one can think about the future. The idea was to understand the evolution of the various political leaders, dig deeper into the events that have shaped the policies through our past 60 years, and fathom why we made a number of wrong turns since Independence.
My approach has been to focus on key events through these 60 years, and read them through the words of multiple authors. Writers have their biases, and to interpret what has happened, I figured it would be a good idea to read a wide range of analyses so I could then create my own mental models and maps of what happened.
It has been a fascinating journey so far. And as I read, so many “What-Ifs” come up. India has been singularly unfortunate that at many times, when we could chosen development and prosperity, events occurred which pushed us in a different direction.
Continued tomorrow.
