Modi's economic reforms made 'little progress': Chinese paper

'India's economic reforms are impeded by its political institutions and party systems.'

Dismissing reports about India becoming the "new growth engine of world economy", Chinese state media on Wednesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's economic reforms have achieved "little progress" and asserted that the Chinese economy was five times bigger than the Indian economy.

Speculation that "the Indian economy will surpass that of China" and "India will become a new engine for the world economy" are frequently heard and some analysts even conjecture that the Chinese model is inferior to that of India, an article in state-run Global Times said.

"By hyping the Indian economy's superiority, Indian officials and the Western media are instigating international investors to direct their capitals from Beijing to New Delhi, giving impetus to Indian growth," the article said.

"However, such hype has limited effects as profit-oriented investors try to lower their transaction costs as well," it said.

The article advised against comparing the India model with China model and suggested that the two countries, should, rather learn from each other's development experience.

"There is no fixed model for China's development, thus it is impossible to make comparisons between Chinese and Indian models," it said.

Talking about prime minister Modi's economic reforms, the article said: "Since he came into office as prime minister, Modi has boosted the morale of the Indian economy. However, Modi's economic reform has achieved little progress, which is known in the international community."

It contended that India's economic reforms are impeded by its political institutions and party systems.

"Certain interest groups carry more weight than Indian politicians. Sophisticated party-to-party competitions have seriously influenced the nation's executive ability," it said.

The article, however, praised India's political institutions for providing stability to the country for seven decades.

"India's political institutions have helped maintain a stable state structure in the last 70 years. Despite separatist activities, India's integrity and overall stability have not been challenged," it said.

"India's economy is developing slowly but steadily. In comparison with other South Asian nations, India has chosen a relatively more successful development road," it said.
Still, the article reminded, China's economy is five times bigger than Indian economy.

"China, in spite of its high efficiency, has made a few wrong decisions in the past 60 years. But, there is no need to compare the Chinese economic development mode with that of India. Despite mistakes and social problems, China has seen sound economic development since the founding of the People's Republic of China," it said.