Tirthankar Roy is Professor of Economic History at London School of Economics and Political Science. His recent and forthcoming books include A Business History of India: Enterprise and the Emergence of Capitalism since 1700 (Cambridge University Press, 2018); An Economic History of Colonialism (with Leigh Gardner, Bristol University Press, 2020); and Law and the Economy in a Young Democracy: India since 1947 (with Anand Swamy, University of Chicago Press, forthcoming). He has published extensively on South Asian history and development and has taught South Asia and Global History courses. K. Ravi Raman is currently a member of the State Planning Board, Government of Kerala. He is also an honorary research fellow in the Department of Development Studies, SOAS, London, and affiliated researcher at the University of Bergen, Norway.

• Preface; List of Tables; List of Figures; 1. Introduction; 2. Before Independence; 3. The Retreat of Agriculture; 4. Capital: Retreat and Resurgence; 5. Work, Labour, and Migration; 6. Growth and Development; 7. The Left Legacy; 8. Geography: An Asset or a Challenge?; 9. Conclusion; References.