Chanakya’s Arthashastra cited in Economic Survey 2026 as early model of economic statecraft

Economic Survey 2026

• Survey 2026 urges India to use economic statecraft for strategic interests
• Survey links Chanakya's Arthashastra to the foundation of economic security.
• India reassesses supply chains, economic dependencies amid modern global risks

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The Economic Survey 2026 has called for the active use of “economic statecraft”, urging the government to strategically deploy economic tools to advance India’s foreign policy, national security and long-term strategic interests.

The emphasis comes as India remains among the world’s fastest-growing major economies for the fourth consecutive year.

While underlining the relevance of economic statecraft in today’s geopolitical environment, the survey notes that the concept itself is far from new.

It specifically cites Chanakya, also known as Kautilya, and his seminal work Arthashastra as one of the earliest and most systematic treatises on statecraft, integrating economic governance with political and strategic imperatives.

According to the survey, Arthashastra demonstrates how economic instruments such as trade regulation, taxation, resource management and state control were historically used to strengthen state power and achieve strategic objectives.

By invoking Chanakya, the survey places India’s modern economic strategy within a long civilisational tradition of linking economic policy to national security and diplomacy.

The survey also refers to historical examples beyond India, including the Megarian Decree imposed by ancient Athens and the Roman Empire’s grain provisioning system, Cura Annonae, as instances where economic measures were used to achieve strategic and political ends.

Explaining the concept, the survey defines economic statecraft as the deliberate use of economic means to achieve strategic outcomes. Unlike conventional economic policy, which focuses on goals such as controlling inflation, managing deficits and promoting growth, economic statecraft goes further by using economic tools to influence the behaviour of other states, protect national security, or reshape geopolitical outcomes.

In the modern context, the survey notes that economic interdependence, once seen as a stabilising force, is increasingly viewed as a source of vulnerability. Pandemic-related disruptions, the weaponisation of energy and finance during global conflicts, and the growing use of export controls in advanced technologies have exposed the limits of efficiency-driven globalisation.

As a result, both advanced and emerging economies are reassessing their dependence on concentrated supply chains, critical raw materials and key technologies, often framing these shifts through the lens of national security. The Economic Survey argues that India must consciously use economic statecraft, rooted in both historical wisdom and contemporary realities, to navigate an increasingly contested global order.