Strategic Advising to Policymakers in India
Nirupam Bajpai's work with his colleagues, most notably with Jeffrey Sachs both at Harvard University (1995 to 2002) and at Columbia University (2002 to present), has helped advise policymakers on a variety of issues relating to the Indian economy and India’s economic reforms, both at the federal and state levels. Dr. Bajpai has been advising the Prime Ministers of India, (the Honorable Atal Bihari Vajpayee from October 1999 to May 2004 and the Honorable Dr. Manmohan Singh since June 2004) the Commerce and Industry Minister, the Ministers of Finance and Health and Family Welfare, among others. At the state level, Dr. Bajpai has advised the state Governments of Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh among others. His research and advice has helped implement the following:
Based on Dr. Bajpai's suggestions, the former Prime Minister of India, the Honorable Atal Bihari Vajpayee, announced major National Goals for Indian development during his Address to the Nation on August 15th, 2000. The Prime Minister said, “…, let us together resolve to make this decade, the Decade of Development. To realise this goal, we have decided to achieve the target of doubling India’s per capita income in the next ten years. The Prime Minister added, “The most valuable investment that we can make in India’s future is to ensure that every child gets education. We have decided that by 2010, every Indian child will get education up to class eight. We have launched Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (Education for All campaign) to achieve this goal. Education until graduation has been made free for women.”
The complete speech of the Prime Minister is available: http://www.indianembassy.org/special/cabinet/Primeminister/pm_id_2000.htm
In response to the goal of doubling India's per capita income by the year 2010, the Planning Commission of India set an eight-percent-per-year growth target for India's Tenth Five-Year Plan. Similarly, in response to the goal of attaining universal elementary education by the year 2010, the government is investing vast sums of money for expanding school coverage, capacity building, mid-day meals, free school books for children of families living below the poverty line and quality improvement measures.
India's export/import policy for the years 1999 and 2000 draws extensively on Dr. Bajpai's research and advice. Twelve Special Economic Zones are being established in India across nine states, based on his work with Professor Sachs and their recommendations to the then Minister of Commerce and Industry, the late Murasoli Maran.
For details of India’s Special Economic Zones: http://sezindia.nic.in/
The Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, based on Dr. Bajpai's suggestions, announced several major state-level development goals in July of 2002. Ms. Jayalalithaa said, “I would like to set the following development goals for Tamilnadu:
First by the year 2010 the per capita income of Tamilnadu would be doubled. Second, by the year 2005 there would be universalisation of education until class V with a special effort for girls and disadvantaged groups. Third, by the year 2008, Tamilnadu will not only be the leading player in the field of IT in India, but will also become a regional gateway to Asia home to half the humanity. Fourth by the year 2008,Tamilnadu will be the top ranking manufactured goods exporter in India and will double its export earnings and Finally, by the year 2010 all villages in Tamilnadu will possess electricity, a trunk road, telephone and internet connectivity, a school, clean water and sanitation, a village health worker and local self government. She added, “This is my dream, this is my vision for Tamilnadu and this is the theme the government headed by me has been striving to turn into a reality.”
Anchored on Dr. Bajpai's research papers on the information technology industry in Tamil Nadu, the State Government brought forth an Action Plan to develop the state's IT industry. In addition, his research and advising work has helped the Tamil Nadu government implement tax and expenditure reforms, and establish Special Economic Zones.
Based on Dr. Bajpai's recommendations and the research initiated under the leadership of Professor Sachs, the Government of India has set up a National Commission on Macroeconomics and Health (NCMH). The NCMH, launched in New Delhi on January 9th, 2003, is co-chaired by the Finance and Health Ministers of India. The Ministry of Health, Government of India published the NCMH report in August 2005. The NCMH report is available at:
http://mohfw.nic.in/reports_on_ncmh.htm
For a project entitled ‘Scaling up Services in Rural India’, with Dr. Bajpai’s research, project direction and advice, the state governments of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh are scaling up public investments in the primary health and primary education sectors in the rural areas of these two states. Additionally, the federal government is also helping provide larger resources to the states for these social sectors. Several other recommendations from the project reports are being utilized in order to improve service delivery in the rural areas. The federal government has also announced the setting-up of five Institutes of Public Health Administration in collaboration with the private sector.
Other economic policy reforms that have utilized his ideas and suggestions are in the areas of growth strategy, fiscal reform, export orientation and the role of states in promoting export-led growth, small-scale industry, labor laws, information technology and the use of IT in the education and health sectors.
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