Growth is the only path forward and it demands we choose what is right over what is easy. Since 2014, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has leaped from a fragile, policy-paralysed economy to a resilient global force. With people-first policies, institutional reform, and digital innovation, India today is scripting a new story, one of confidence and capability.
The most direct touch point of this transformation is in taxation. In 2014, the basic income tax exemption limit stood at Rs 2.5 lakh. It rose to Rs 5 lakh by 2019, Rs 7 lakh in 2023, and now Rs 12 lakh in 2025 under the new regime, significantly increasing disposable income for the middle class. At the same time, the Government abolished the unproductive wealth tax in 2015 and replaced it with a high-income surcharge, increasing both efficiency and equity.
The Goods and Services Tax (GST), rolled out in 2017, unified over a dozen State and Central levies into a single indirect tax, reducing logistics costs and broadening the formal economy. In FY25 alone, GST collections exceeded Rs 16.75 lakh crore. India’s tax-to-GDP ratio is projected to touch a record 11.7 per cent in FY25, driven by rising collections from more equitable direct taxes. Corporate tax reform was equally bold. In 2019, the base corporate tax rate was cut from 30 per cent to 22 per cent, and to just 15 per cent for new manufacturing units, among the lowest in the world. This made India an attractive hub for global investment
These reforms were supported by a deep digital push. Initiatives like e-filing, analytics via Project Insight, the Equalisation Levy, and Vivad Se Vishwas cleaned up compliance, expanded the tax base, and settled over 1 lakh pending disputes. The tax system today is simpler, faster, and fairer than it was a decade ago.
India’s banking sector also underwent a structural overhaul. When the Government led by PM Modi assumed office, public banks were weighed down by Non-Performing Assets (NPAs). The Asset Quality Review (2015) forced banks to reveal true stress levels. Gross NPAs, which peaked above 8 per cent in FY16, dropped to 2.8 per cent by FY24. Between 2017 and 2021, Rs 3.31 lakh crore was infused to recapitalise public banks. The result: PSBs posted a record Rs 1.78 lakh crore net profit in FY25, up 26 per cent from the previous year. Market cap of the State Bank of India (SBI) rose from Rs 1.51 lakh crore in FY16 to Rs 7.32 lakh crore in FY26. To ensure consistent inflation control, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) was constituted in 2016, anchoring inflation within the 2 per cent to 6 per cent band and making rate-setting more transparent and data-driven. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), introduced in 2016, has since enabled recovery of over Rs 3.55 lakh crore and brought overdue credit discipline.
The industrial rejuvenation in India began with the Make in India initiative launched in 2014, aiming to increase manufacturing’s GDP share to 25 per cent and attract investment. FDI inflows rose from $45.14 billion in 2014-15 to a record $84.83 billion in 2021-22, totalling $667.41 billion from April 2014 to March 2024, which is 67 per cent of total inflows over the past 24 years. Electronics production jumped from $48 billion in FY17 to $155 billion in FY23. The PLI schemes introduced in 2020 brought in Rs 1.46 lakh crore in investments and generated Rs 12.5 lakh crore in output by August 2024, creating nearly 9.5 lakh jobs.
From 2020 to 2023, over 180 criminal provisions in economic laws were decriminalised, and 29 labor laws were merged into four codes.
Defence manufacturing rose by 174 per cent to Rs 1.27 lakh crore, while exports increased 30-fold to Rs 21,083 crore over a decade. The number of DPIIT-recognised start-ups surged from 500 in 2016 to over 1.59 lakh, and unicorns grew from 11 to 119 by 2024.
MUDRA Yojana disbursed over 52 crore loans worth Rs 32 lakh crore to small entrepreneurs. India’s intellectual property ecosystem has seen significant growth, with patents granted increasing from 5,978 in 2014-15 to 103,057 in 2023-24-an impressive 17-fold rise. Copyright, trademark, and design registrations have also surged, placing India in the global top 10 for IP filings. Over the last decade, India has improved its position in the Global Innovation Index, climbing from 81st in 2015 to 39th in 2024.
India’s physical infrastructure mirrored its macro story. National highway length grew from 91,287 km in 2014 to 1,46,204 km in 2025. The highways budget surged from Rs 31,130 crore to Rs 3,00,019 crore. Iconic projects such as the Atal Tunnel, Chenab Bridge and Zojila Tunnel were completed. Rail track length addition more than doubled since 2014 (14,000 km to 31,000 km), and electrification increased from 21,000 km to 41,000 km. Port turnaround time is now 0.9 days, faster than Singapore (1) or the US (1.5).India rose 16 spots in the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index between 2014 and 2023.
Social schemes were strategically aligned with economic goals. Ayushman Bharat now covers 50 crore citizens with Rs 5 lakh in annual health insurance. The Jal Jeevan Mission expanded tap water access from 3.23 crore rural homes in 2019 to 15.6 crore in 2025. According to WHO, the initiative saves over 5.5 crore hours daily, mostly for women and potentially prevented nearly 4 lakh deaths and saved 1.4 crore Disability Adjusted Life Years. Employment impact was estimated at 73.2 lakh direct person-years and 2.2 crore indirect job-years. Swachh Bharat built 10 crore toilets, improving hygiene and reducing disease. Ujjwala Yojana provided 9 crore LPG connections, raising rural productivity.
These reforms produced undeniable macroeconomic outcomes. Extreme poverty fell from 27.1 per cent in 2011-12 to just 5.3 per cent in 2022-23, while the Multidimensional Poverty Index dropped from 53.8 per cent in 2005-06 to 15.5 per cent by 2022-23, reflecting better access to health, education, and living standards. Between 2014 and 2024, India generated 17.19 crore new jobs, a sharp contrast to the 2.9 crore created in the previous decade. The unemployment rate declined from 6 per cent in 2017-18 to 3.2 per cent in 2023-24. Youth employability rose markedly, from 33.95 per cent in 2013 to 54.81 per cent in 2024. Inflation, too, was better managed averaging around 5 per cent under the Modi Government compared to 7.5 per cent during the UPA decade.
There’s no denying that India still has miles to go on the economic front. Challenges remain, and in a country this vast, addressing one issue can often create friction elsewhere. But the last 11 years have shown what’s possible when reform is driven by clarityof vision, of policy, and of purpose.