Off to Delhi tomorrow for a few days to launch a report on the impact of mobiles in India. As homework this time I read Edward Luce's book 'In Spite of the Gods' which seemed to this non-expert on the country a very good overview of the economy and how the politics work. One of his big themes is that it's only the 'creamy layer', a wonderful Indian English phrase for the elite, which has benefited massively from the reforms and the amazing growth of the country, while the great mass of the Indian people have not. I thought his explanation of how caste-identity politics prevented democratic votes from spreading the benefits of growth was masterly. The theme certainly fits with our mobiles report (at www.vodafone.com/publicpolicyseries from Tuesday), which points to the need for more effective reform if the benefits of communications are to be shared outside the creamy layer. Anyway, my India reading isn't very extensive. I enjoyed William Dalrymple's City of Djinns, and Amartya Sen's The Argumentative Indian. I'd be glad of other recommendations on the economy.