What are the best books for developing a solid understanding of fundamentals of Economics? Recently, Raghuram Rajan, a former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund and current Governor of central bank of India, while addressing undergraduate students of Economics, said:


  ... In this country there is a tremendous need for capable economists. I see that every day in my work. There is a need in Delhi, in Mumbai and all over the country. We have lost a generation of economists...The kind of economics we need is based on a good understanding of the fundamentals of economics, such as price theory and general equilibrium, which is the hardest concept to understand. A lot of policy-making is done without an understanding of general equilibrium which is often the key contribution that an economist can make to the dialog. The kind of economics we need is based on rigorous fundamentals – blood, sweat, tears, and toil. ...


I am a student of public policy in India, aiming to achieve a key position in public policy making. As much as his above statements make me worry at many levels, they also set a a goal for me to achieve. 

In this context, given my background, what do I read to gain "that expected level" of understanding? How should my learning path look like?

EDIT: I'm asked to provide my mathematical background. I have done following undergrad math courses:

Algebra
Linear Algebra
Real Analysis
Complex Analysis
Calculus
Analytic Geometry
Ordinary Differential Equations
Partial Differential Equations
Linear Algebra
Vector Analysis
Linear Programming
Numerical Analysis and Computer programming
Dynamics &amp; Statics
Mechanics and Fluid Dynamics


You can say, I can solve most of the problems from undergrad textbooks on above subjects. I dealt with statistics only at my Senior High School level.
Read Hal Varian's textbook "Microeconomic Analysis". It's brief, yet a standard text in a 4th year or graduate course in advanced micro.  Then grab a good book on mathematical economics that's actually well written, and includes suggestions on how to develop good mathematical intuition, not just a bunch of recipes on how to solve problems.  For example, you can learn how to use determinants in matrix algebra, but how many actually know what a determinant is, both algebraically and geometrically? That's the blood, sweat, and tears bit, I think.   I suggest the two volumes by Knut Sydsaeter (check Amazon)

You may also want to learn some advanced macroeconomic theory, and some spatial, urban and resource economics. 

Take a good course in econometrics, and learn a programming language like Python or Julia so your are not always beholden to other people to provide you with data, which may be dirty or faulty, but you won't know it. 

Watch lots of Youtube videos on economics, esp. controversial topics. Take some cool courses on Coursera or other MOOCS. They are often from some of the top universities in the world, and they are free. 

OK, so now you have some basic tools; if you enjoy using them, and find that real work gets done, why not go to graduate school? 

Then go practice for 20 years, and keep in mind that some aspects of economics may just be bunk anyway, so stay modest, don't get too overly seduced by beautiful models.