If we assume India’s reforms started in 1991, we just completed twenty years of economic reforms. On 24 Jul 2011, then Finance Minister Manmohan Singh ushered landmark reforms and liberalised the economy.
At the end of the speech FM said:
Sir, I do not minimise the difficulties that lie ahead on the long and arduous journey on which we have embarked. But as Victor Hugo once said, “no power on earth can stop an idea whose time has come.” I suggest to this august House that the emergence of India as a major economic power in the world happens to be one such idea. Let the whole world hear it loud and clear. India is now wide awake. We shall prevail. We shall overcome.
There is little doubt that India did wake up and even woke up the world with some impressive growth numbers and creation of wealth. The perception of India being a country of snake-charmers and elephants changed dramatically to a country having software and amazing potential. Based on this, current FM Pranab Mukherjee says – Glass is indeed half full if not full.
However, in terms of absolute numbers barring growth much looks the same. Niranjan of Mint did point this out in a Feb-11 article. Final inflation numbers might actually be higher than those seen in 1991.
I was just reading the Budget Speech by FM in 1991. He explains the background and what made such a budget necessary. One could just use 1991 speech to explain today’s times as well (except that it is not a crisis background):
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Mostly Economics 
