Engaging India is an online column analysing the issues, trends and forces behind the business and politics shaping India and its impact on the world. Engaging India appears Thursday mornings exclusively on FT.com India, a dedicated online section on India, and is written by Jo Johnson, the Financial Times’ South Asia bureau chief; Amy Yee, New Delhi correspondent; and Joe Leahy, Mumbai correspondent.

I was once told that in England a town can be defined as such if it has a church, a post office, a pub and a betting shop. The folk definition of a town in India might include a dairy, a temple, a public telephone and a money transfer outlet.