This book investigates the role of public expenditure in shaping India's development trajectory during a critical decade of post-independence nation-building. John F. J. Toye, drawing on extensive archival research and economic data from the period, examines the policy choices made regarding government spending and their impact on India's economic growth and social progress. The work analyzes the interplay between political imperatives and economic strategy in the allocation of resources during the 1960s.

This work is recognized as a detailed scholarly examination of a specific period in Indian economic policy. Its focus on public expenditure provides a granular view of development strategy during the 1960s. The book is likely to be of interest to specialists in Indian economic history and development economics.