why is the growth of a democratic govt. slow
Answers
Yes, economic growth under a democratic system is much harder to achieve than under a fascist regime. However, growth is only one of many aspects of an economy, two of the other aspects are longevity and sustainability, also when an economy does achieve the growth under a democratic system, the gain is purer and the effect is long-lasting.
But when you think about it, what is growth without liberty or equal distribution of opportunity? (Read: Madman who starved 60 million to death: Devastating book reveals how Mao's megalomania turned China into a madhouse and Full text of "The Black Book of Communism")
Today democracy is not optional; it's almost a dire necessity.
Sure, fascist regimes — unhindered by such things as public debates, political opposition, property rights as well as freedom of expression — can give rise to short-term growth. For instance, Hitler's Germany, Soviet Union in its nascent stages, China in the 1990s all yielded rapid economic growth but they simply couldn't keep up the pace and when they did falter they either lost their way forever or disintegrated.
Consider this,
China... has no rural property rights. China's 750 million rural residents who lease land are at the mercy of the local and regional government as to what compensation they will receive, if any, when they are forced from the land as a result of development, infrastructure improvements, etc. Additionally they have no right to borrow against their lease, and as such they have no assets.
In fact, the Chinese government's official figures state that more than 200,000 hectares of rural land are taken from rural residents every year with little or no compensation. According to some estimates, between 1992 and 2005 20 million farmers were evicted from agriculture due to land acquisition, and between 1996 and 2005 more than 21% of arable land in China has been put to non-agriculture use.
The result is not unexpected, with over 87,000 mass incidents (or riots) reported in 2005, a 50% increase from 2003. Many provincial governments in China have begun to use plain-clothes policemen to beat, intimidate, or otherwise subdue any peasant that dares to oppose these land grabs. And, as would be expected, the beneficiaries from these policies are developers and corrupt government officials. (source - Why India Will Beat China)
India is suffering not because of democracy but for the lack of it. We are suffering because of mass corruption, crimes, etc. Corruption of all sorts is bad for all of us and democracy seeks to maintain law and order, and to make the institutions more transparent thereby preventing corruption. Democracy entails accountability. And this essentially forces leaders to be as efficient as possible in their attempt to improve the lives of the electorate.
We are suffering because of utterly discriminatory and unequal distribution of opportunities.
We are suffering because of lack of education and infrastructure. We are suffering because of our ignorance and/or general apathy/antipathy towards political subjects.
We are suffering because of our craving for wasteful subsidies, handouts and too much focus on economic welfarism. (Read: Greece default showcases the endgame of the welfare state, and The Greek welfare-state road to ruin)
We are suffering because of our intrinsic socialist/communist orientation.
Bottom line is, we are suffering owing to the existence of all the things that a "capitalist democracy" seeks to eliminate.
Indian system is far from perfect, it is more imperfect than perfect. But one thing that cannot be blamed for it is the democratic style of governance. If anything we need to be more transparent and democratic, not less.
Also as incomes rise and the people become more informed we can expect that India's government institutions will become more responsive and transparent.