The economist Padmini Swaminathan’s book, India’s Industrial Policy: A Reassessment, makes a timely and valuable contribution to the debate on industrialisation in India. The chapters on technical education and industrial development in the Madras Presidency is a valuable historical document of how technical education was conceptualised in colonial India. At over 500 pages, India’s Industrial Policy is a substantial read and an important and timely compilation of Swaminathan’s scholarship. India’s Industrial Policy demonstrates that historical debates on industrial policy continue to resonate with contemporary questions of structural transformation, especially the urgent challenge of generating decent employment, particularly for the growing population of educated youth. It will prove to be a valuable resource for students, researchers, and above all, policymakers interested in understanding India’s industrial development and its future trajectory.