Signs of India’s Development

I visited India in 1995 and exactly ten years later in 2005, so it might be interesting to compare those experiences. Before I write anything else, I should say that I had a wonderful time in India and look forward to returning in less than 10 years.

In 1995, there were signs that India was at the cusp of some development. My wife went on and on about all of the changes she saw. Now in 2005, I could see some changes first hand. While some things have changed, the change is really pretty subtle to me. Most of Chennai looked much like it did in 1995. But there were a few obvious changes.

Cell phones

This is obvious: everyone in India seems to have cell phones now.

Motorcycles

I was expecting to see a lot more cars in Chennai. What I saw was a lot more motorcycles. Now at first glance, this might seem to be retrogression since motorcycles would seem to be an inferior good in the West. But a motorcycle is definitely a step up for someone who previously had to walk or ride a bicycle. It is obvious that the motorcycle is a good that is now affordable to the majority of Indians. Even in small villages, I saw lots of people with motorbikes.

Prepared foods

In 1995, my wife’s mother prepared idly and dosa mauva (dough) in a blender. Today, she just buys mauva from the store. She buys yogurt from the store instead of making it herself. She used to grind her own Sambar powder; now she buys it from the store. There may be something lost in the process, but the switch from homemade to store-bought is an unmistakable sign of development.

Price increases

The most obvious sign for me of India’s development is that the price (in dollars) for many luxury items is considerably more expensive, even accounting for inflation. I will give three examples:

Dakshin
One of Chennai’s finest South Indian restaurants is Dakshin at the Park Sheraton Hotel. My wife and I took her parents there in 1995 and had an absolutely wonderful experience. I remember the price very well because I used that as an example for how inexpensive India was in many conversations. The restaurant in 1995 was only half-filled and the price for an outstanding meal was only $36 dollars for 4 people. In 2005, the restaurant was packed and the bill for the same 4 people (plus a child who only ate rice and Indian bread) was $85. This might be partly a story of Dakshin’s success, but generally, we found that prices for restaurant food everywhere was much more pricey.

Raymond’s
In 1995, I bought several shirts, slacks, and coats from Raymond’s, a premier clothier in Chennai. In 2005 we walked in, looked at the prices, and walked out. In 1995 you could get a fine dress shirt for $10; today it is $30. In 1995, fine dress slacks were selling for $20; today they were selling for $70. It was not much of a bargain today.

I did get several nice but simple shirts and chinos from another store for a reasonable price. The big price increase seems to have hit primarily the upscale market.

Carpets
My wife and I shopped at CIE for a nice carpet for our house. The salesman said the price of carpets has gone up by a factor of 4 since 1995. Of course, he might have just been saying that but my wife’s parents who had bought some carpets ten years ago thought that this seem to be accurate. In 1995, you could get an excellent quality silk carpet 4’ by 6’ for less than $1000. Today, they start at $3000.

The price increases probably reflect the new purchasing power of the Indian upper middle class. But the cost of labor has probably increased considerably as well. In the case of the carpets, I think it might reflect the success of reducing the amount of child labor used in making these carpets, or at least one could hope that this is the case.

Counterexamples

Although I saw some examples of India’s development, I saw several counterexamples as well. For example, there was a small village near the lodge we stayed at in Nagarahole National Park that we passed through on several occasions. The children there lacked any footwear and the women had to collect their family’s water in a pot from the common well to carry it back to their homes.

Some of the roads we drove on in 2005 seemed fairly nice but there still are no freeways in India. And some of the roads we drove on in Nagarahole were some of the worst in the world. They purposefully avoided repaving the roads there to prevent too much traffic and disturbing the animals in the National Park. But this is simply decision by indecision. The road through there is the main road connecting Mysore to Kerala and something needs to be done.

In 1995, my wife’s parents said that a public transit was being built for Chennai. In 2005, I saw no evidence of it at all. In 1995, my wife’s mother cooked using a propane tank because there was no natural gas utility in Chennai. In 2005, there’s no difference. Prior to 2005, there was severe water shortage in Chennai and my wife’s parents suffered much hardship because of this. The only reason 2005 is different is due to the rain. The city has done nothing.

Basically, none of India’s development has been aided by any observable government good or service. India is developing despite the lack of government services. But good government services like dependable water supply and other services would be welcome.