The ability of a country to raise capital in the financial markets is linked to its perceived creditworthiness and is a critical but underexplored theme determining its economic and social prospects. Investors typically rely on credit ratings to determine a country’s credit worthiness. If a country’s credit rating is lower than its credit fundamentals, as we argue to be the case for India, it invariably leads to higher borrowing costs, leaving less fiscal space for public spending on areas such as health, education, infrastructure, and climate resilience.