Contents -- Acknowledgements -- Map States of the Indian federal union. -- 1 Introduction -- 2 The evolution of economic reform in India -- 3 Theoretical and comparative perspectives on the politics of economic reform -- 4 Political incentives: elite perceptions and the calculus of survival -- 5 Political institutions: federalism, informal networks, and the management of dissent -- 6 Political skills: introducing reform by stealth -- 7 Implications -- Bibliography -- Index.