If the reason is cultural, how come before 1800s, i.e. before British took over India, India had been either the richest country in the world, or the second richest from 1CE to 1800s?
Here are the numbers in various centuries from The World Economy: A Millennial Perspective by economic historian Angus Maddison
Country GDP($millions)1CE 1000 1600 1700
World 102536 116790 329417 371369
India 33750 33750 74250 90750
China 26820 26550 96000 82800
M. East 16470 16470 36725 40567
W. Europe 11115 13723 43000 45000

Don't blame ills of a socialist economy on cluture