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The historical roots of India’s service-led development : a sectoral analysis of Anglo-Indian productivity differences, 1870–2000

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Broadberry, S. N. and Gupta, Bishnupriya (2010) The historical roots of India’s service-led development : a sectoral analysis of Anglo-Indian productivity differences, 1870–2000. In: Conference on Economic Change Around the Indian Ocean in the Very Long Run, University of Warwick, Venice, Italy, 22-24 Jul 2008. Published in: Explorations in Economic History, Vol.47 (No.3). pp. 264-278.

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eeh.2009.09.004

Abstract

India fell further behind the UK in terms of GDP per capita and overall labour productivity between the 1870s and the 1970s, but has been catching-up since. This paper offers a sectoral analysis of these trends. Comparative India/UK labour productivity in agriculture has declined continuously, and agriculture still accounts for around two-thirds of employment in India. Agriculture thus played a key role in India’s falling behind and has subsequently slowed down the process of catching up. Although there have been substantial fluctuations in comparative India/UK labour productivity in industry, this sector has exhibited no long run trend. The only sector to exhibit an upward trend in comparative India/UK labour productivity is services. India’s recent emergence as a dynamic service-led economy thus appears to have long historical roots. Although India has been characterised by relatively low levels of physical and human capital formation overall, its education provision has historically been unusually skewed towards secondary and tertiary levels. This has provided a limited supply of high productivity workers who have been employed predominantly in services.

Item Type:

Conference Item (Paper)

Subjects:

H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions
D History General and Old World > DS Asia

Divisions:

Faculty of Social Sciences > Economics

Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):

Labor productivity -- India -- History, Labor productivity -- Great Britain -- History, Labor productivity -- Effect of education on -- India, Agricultural productivity -- India, India -- Economic conditions

Journal or Publication Title:

Explorations in Economic History

Publisher:

Elsevier

ISSN:

0014-4983

Official Date:

July 2010

Dates:

Date	Event
July 2010	Published

Volume:

Vol.47

Number:

No.3

Page Range:

pp. 264-278

Identification Number:

10.1016/j.eeh.2009.09.004

Status:

Peer Reviewed

Publication Status:

Published

Access rights to Published version:

Restricted or Subscription Access

Version or Related Resource:

Broadberry, S.N. and Gupta, B. (2007). The historical roots of India’s service-led development: a sectoral analysis of Anglo-Indian productivity differences, 1870-2000. [Coventry] : University of Warwick, Economics Department. (Warwick economic research papers, no.817). http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/1399 ; Broadberry, Stephen and Gupta, Bishnupriya (2008). The historical roots of India’s service-led development : a sectoral analysis of Anglo-Indian productivity differences, 1870-2000. In: Economic History Society Annual Conference, University of Nottingham. Nottingham, 28-30 Mar 2008. http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/46019

Conference Paper Type:

Paper

Title of Event:

Conference on Economic Change Around the Indian Ocean in the Very Long Run

Type of Event:

Conference

Location of Event:

University of Warwick, Venice, Italy

Date(s) of Event:

22-24 Jul 2008

Related URLs:

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