Dr Manmohan Singh delivered the 16th Annual Convocation Address at IIM Bangalore on April 15, 1991, choosing IIMB as a forum to articulate his economic vision for India. The rest is history...

Excerpts from the speech:

Challenges on the Economic Front Today
MANMOHAN SINGH

Management education has taken firm root in our country. The IIMs have been pace setters in this regard. In this context, IIM Bangalore is be complimented that its programmes lay special emphasis on improving the effectiveness of public sector organization and public systems and underdeveloped managed sectors of the economy, such as agriculture and rural development, energy, health and population, human settlement, environment and transport. All these sectors are of tremendous scope for improving organizational efficiency and productivity of resource use in these sectors. They have to be intellectually alert, committed to the pursuit of excellence and socially involved. Profit and loss accounts of an enterprise are an important indicator of managerial effectiveness. But a comprehensive measure of managerial effectiveness must also include an awareness and involvement in wider societal concerns, such as the protection of environment, conservation of energy and concern for social justice.
Having been involved in development administration for two decades, I will focus on the current economic situation in the country and how we can overcome the acute economic crisis now facing us.

India in the 80s
In August 1987, when I left India to take up my assignment with the South Commission in Geneva, the national mood was one of great self-confidence and optimism regarding our ability to effectively tackle problems of poverty, under-development and modernization of our economy.

On the whole, our country made impressive progress in the 1980s. The growth rate of the economy went up to 5.6 per cent per annum as compared the long-term trend of 3.5 per cent. There was acceleration in the growth rate of both agriculture and industry. The poverty ratio declined sharply, broadly in line with the projection of the Sixth and Seventh Plans.

Current Economic Situation
And yet in November 1990, I found that there was a profound change in the national mood. There was a growing feeling of scepticism, self-doubt, even of despondency. Obviously , the recent political instability at the centre and the deepening