The new book, 'Beyond Cynicism: Kerala 2.0', is not just another policy compendium or bureaucratic memoir. It is a bold, clear-eyed and deeply informed call to action - one that I wholeheartedly endorse. Edited by P H Kurian and T Balakrishnan, both former Additional Chief Secretaries to the Kerala government, this collection of 21 essays by serving and retired IAS and IPS officers of the Kerala cadre is a rare and urgent intervention. It is a book that dares to diagnose Kerala's systemic dysfunctions and prescribes the kind of radical reforms that most politicians and policymakers shy away from. What makes this book compelling is not just the depth of its analysis, but the credibility of its authors. These are not ivory-tower theorists or detached commentators. They are seasoned administrators who have worked within the system, often pushing against its inertia. This is an intervention written not by armchair critics, but by the architects (and occasional dissidents) of the very system they diagnose, which lends it an unassailable authority. Kurian, for instance, famously denied a patent to Novartis in 2006, enabling public access to affordable cancer medication. Balakrishnan helped reimagine Kerala's governance, often by challenging bureaucratic orthodoxy.Their insider perspective lends the book both authority and urgency.

The book's central thesis is unflinching: Kerala is economically stagnant, fiscally overstretched, agriculturally weak and industrially anaemic. This is not hyperbole. The state's youth are leaving in droves for education and employment abroad, while unskilled labour from poorer Indian states fills the vacuum at home. The paradox is painful and telling. The contributors do not wallow in despair, however. Instead, they offer a roadmap (sometimes uneven, but always earnest) for structural transformation. Amitabh Kant, who reinvented Kerala's tourism brand and went on to helm Niti Aayog, delivers one of the most provocative essays, arguing that Kerala's economic model is trapped in........

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