A major takeaway from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address to the nation on Sunday was a clear confirmation that the government had changed its economic policy focus to revive and sustain growth. Of course, the primary reason for his address was to convey to the nation the likely impact of the decision of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council to bring down the number of main rates from four to two and thereby slash rates for over 450 goods and services. The so-called “Festival of Savings” that he believed the GST rate cut would usher in was the stated objective. But beneath that objective, a clear shift in the focus of his government’s economic policy was visible.

The post-Covid years saw the Modi government follow a two-pronged approach to reviving economic growth. At one level, th

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