New Delhi: Since 1953, China’s five-year plans have played the pivotal role of being a blueprint for its continued growth to the No. 2 position today. Unlike India, where our federal democratic set-up means that centre-driven plans don’t often deliver, China’s plan document is a bible that is cascaded down to every province and city, where the local mayor is responsible for its implementation and success. A mayor who fails has no future in China’s Communist Party.

Therefore, if you want to know what China’s top-most leader—in this case, Xi Jinping—is thinking, all you have to do is to look at the five-year plan manifesto. The 15th such plan, for 2026 to 2030, was approved by the country’s politburo on October 23. Unlike in the past, when it focused on becoming an export powerhouse, its c

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