India has one of the fastest growing economies on earth. Over the past three decades, socialism has been replaced by pro-business policies as the way forward. And yet, in this 'new' India, grinding poverty is still a feature of everyday life. Some 450 million people subsist on less than $1.25 per day and nearly half of India's children are malnourished. In his latest book, Atul Kohli, a seasoned scholar of Indian politics and economics, blames this discrepancy on the narrow nature of the ruling alliance in India that, in its new-found relationship with business, has prioritized economic growth above all other social and political considerations. This thoughtful and challenging book affords an alternative vision of India's rise in the world that its democratic rulers will be forced to come to grips with in the years ahead.

A Foreign Affairs Best Book of 2012 on Asia and the Pacific

'In a lucid, penetrating treatment of India's political economy since liberalisation, Atul Kohli disentangles one of the nation's most vexing paradoxes.'

Source: Contemporary South Asia

'Atul Kohli’s book stands out, offering as it does what is probably the best historical narrative of India’s political economy … and developing a distinctive analysis of the changing character of the Indian state.'

John Harriss Source: Economic and Political Weekly

'An incisive analysis of the country’s political economy over the past three decades.'

N. P. Ulekh Source: Economic Times

'Among the many recent publications evaluating the performance of the Indian economy … Kohli’s work deserves special attention for the conclusion it arrives at (and for its) political economy approach … A detailed and perceptive analysis of the post-reform performance of the States is an important contribution of the book.'

C. T. Kurien Source: The Hindu

'Kohli’s scorching critique argues that a ‘state-business alliance’ dominates Indian policy making.'

Andrew Nathan Source: Foreign Affairs

'The book’s strength lies in its clarity of thought and expression complemented by the use of simple and lucid language.'

Sidhartha Mukerji Source: The Book Review

'As a social democrat, Kohli begins by asserting that neo-liberal economics is clearly wrong when it relies on economic growth as the principal measure of economic progress … Kohli’s book is long overdue. The debate regarding India’s economic model has been too one-sided. It is refreshing to hear an alternative point of view.'

Jon P. Dorschner Source: American Diplomacy

'Poverty Amid Plenty [in the New India] brings together Atul Kohli’s significant contribution to the political economy of India’s growth and redistribution within a single crisp volume. It will interest specialist and non-specialist readers alike, and sharpen debate on India’s economic reforms. It is the finest class-based argument on the politics of industrialization, growth and redistribution in India … Atul Kohli’s is a powerful scholarly voice that combines theoretical rigour with detailed empirical analysis. This book will reinvigorate the debate on India’s economic transition.'

Rahul Mukherji Source: Pacific Affairs

'As the title indicates this book by Atul Kohli sets out to explain both the remarkable economic growth in India during the last three decades and the disappointing lack of success in combating poverty … India’s political economy is notoriously difficult to summarise and predict but irrespective of this, Kohli’s book will be a standard reference work on India’s political economy at the beginning of the twenty-first century.'

Jørgen Dige Pedersen Source: Commonwealth and Comparative Politics