Administration degenerates into notings on files/regulations, entangle regulations/ institutions, set up to solve problems, become problems/ even matters that endanger national security lose their way in courts, get buried in files/ enterprises become havens of patronage, slovenliness/ a public sector, least accountable to the public, becomes the truly private sector of ministers, officials/the contrast with China/ the way out: an enabling state/ the first requisite for that: exhume, document, expose the true state of affairs/ a unique, insider's account of what has become of governance/ the unanswerable case for turning the system inside-out/now/.

Arun Shourie is one of India's best known commentators on current and political affairs. He has been an economist with the World Bank, a consultant to the Planning Commission and Editor of The Indian Express. His writings have gained him a vast following across the country, as well as several national and international awards.