Macroeconomic effects of public investment in infrastructure in India

This paper attempts to improve the aggregative, structural, macroeconometric model for India that has been under development by the author and his associates in recent years. Specifically, it uses 3SLS with simultaneously iterative weighing matrix and coefficients. This gave more efficient estimates of the parameters and better goodness-of-fit statistics. The model emphasises the inter-relationships between internal and external balances and also the relation between money, output, prices and balance of payments. A few counterfactual simulations relating to stepping-up public investment in infrastructure as a way of overcoming the global economic crisis in India are illustrated. Public investment through commercial bank borrowing seems to have an advantage over other ways of financing investment in India.