Certainly not history

THERE is an inherent difficulty in categorising a book of this genre. A commemorative volume to mark 50 years of Indian Independence cannot, perhaps, lay full claim to being an authoritative source of history. Not surprising the not-so-bright spots of the country's economic history do not find adequate mention here. Moreover, the book has been commissioned by the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). Such liaison can produce useful material for a lobbyist or update recent economic statistics but not historical material as commonly understood.

That however is not to belittle the standards of scholarship of the 50-odd contributors who have manfully covered the spectrum of economic development - from the pre-colonial era through the British period to independent India. But having so many writers poses its own set of problems, the most important being maintaining continuity or the common thread so essential if the book were to serve as reference material.

Besides the heavy emphasis on modern times - the present day - goes against the grain of a historical treatment which the book professes to do. Topics like "India's Global Players of the Future", Modern India and the Emerging Woman" and so on make superficial reading and can become obsolete quickly. Readers will find those chapters repetitive. Note, for instance, the following eulogy on the Ambanis: "Reliance is indisputably India's global giant and has successfully shown how, with strategic focus, it is possible to integrate operations and industries in one single generation." Haven't we heard all this several times before?

Readers can be pardoned if they assume that the latter part of the book is culled out from popular business journals.A large proportion of the contribution is from financial journalists who write day in and out on much the same themes. In a book format, their contributions further lose their sheen. Obsolescence, again, looms large when the subject is something like "The New Face of Indian Industry", or "The Brave New Industrialists". Will those headings be appropriate, say, three years later? As a reference point, the book has very little utility. The fortunes of several of those successful businessmen and women have nose- dived since. Probably their descriptions were never meant to showcase India's progress except at a given moment.

Should the book have been split into two or more parts? The early chapters are, by far, the more interesting and could have been embellished with more anecdotal evidence.And that could have qualified as an historical overview of early Indian commerce. that latter chapters require frequent updating to remain relevant. Probably the book was intended for foreign readers or the thoroughly uninitiated Indian one. The production quality and the pictures are excellent and that, rather than most of the content, give this book value.

A coffee table book maybe, but certainly not history.

C.R.L. NARASIMHAN

A Pictorial History of Indian Business, Oxford University Paperbacks, Rs. 595.

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