The Indian economy entered a high growth phase in the early 2000s, and Gujarat with its large industrial, financial, and infrastructure base, access to the sea, and a large skilled workforce, was highly suited to benefit from these opportunities. No doubt, states such as Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and, to a lesser extent, Andhra had somewhat similar characteristics. But Gujarat has also been known to have a relatively efficient bureaucracy. The combination of base conditions, an efficient bureaucracy, and a CM willing to circumvent standard rules, regulations and procedures paid dividends rather quickly.

Within a year or so, Gujarat’s GDP growth took off, to higher than national GDP growth. Investments took off, the speed with which approvals were received accelerated, the delays that typically characterise large investments reduced dramatically. And this was sustained for the following years. There are many stories in the informal circuit on how the government aggressively wooed the investors, circumvented procedures, pressured antagonistic pressure groups, to ensure rapid investments. This is by no means an easy task, ask the Bengal CM. And rightly or wrongly, it requires the bending of many rules and procedures.

But investment is only one part of the story. Many other successes have occurred in Gujarat, Modi didn’t cause them, but he catalysed them through action or deliberate inaction.

Take agriculture. Around the time Modi came to power, BT cotton had already entered Gujarat. There are broadly two types of BT cotton. The legal and illegal. The legal variety is one that is sold by one international company that holds the international patent on the seed. The illegal one is sold by a multitude of smaller operators and was much cheaper (and reportedly of somewhat lower quality). The Gujarati farmer quickly took to the illegal BT cotton varieties. Cotton production shot up dramatically, and today it is hard to find a farmer in Gujarat who would use a traditional (or indeed a legal variety) if he can help it. The role of Gujarat government was that of a silent spectator. The farmer benefited, and so did the agro-economy of the state. But the laws were broken once again.

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