governance, political economy, institutional development and economic regulation
Since the government no longer leaks information to the press on what is about to happen, it is tough to figure out whether the unanimous decision to hold the repo rate (the bank rate) at 5.15 per cent by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on December 6 has the Union government’s blessings. Maybe this is […]
Read More RBI Gov Shakti Das does a U turnIn early 2014 Narendra Modi as a prime ministerial aspirant made three pledges to the people of India, which swept him to power and kept him at the helm. First, the pledge to employ jobless young adults in decent jobs. Second, to shrink the government while increasing governance. Third, to put Rs 1.5 million into […]
Read More Only private “animal spirits” can rescue IndiaDelhi has yet to overcome its Raj inheritance. The capital exudes the complacence of satiated imperialism, decades after the rest of the country has been democratized. The most egregious twin dogmas Two particularly deep-seated Raj dogmas plague Delhi. First, that India has an entitlement to lead the world and second, that our long-term foe is […]
Read More India’s Raj inheritanceIndependent India has never been a full-blooded international trader. But then who is a free trader in these uncertain times when even the United States is putting up tariff walls faster than physical ones? Our governmental instincts veer towards protection rather than international competitiveness. India too large, too poor To be sure, the 1991 liberalisation […]
Read More India shies away from free tradeOne doesn’t quite know what it takes to win a Sveriges Riksbank Prize — instituted in 2006 in Memory of Alfred Nobel — in the Economic Sciences category. The three winners this year, of which two are also co-authors of a book – “Good Economics for Hard Times” 2019 are the ones best placed to […]
Read More Saving the world from below – Nobel Prize winners Banerjee- DufloExports in the first half of this fiscal year were $267 billion, 1.9 per cent higher than last year. This was dismal if exports are to be the engine driving GDP growth. Imports, at $312 billion, reflected poor domestic demand and contracted by 3.2 per cent. The only good news was that the trade deficit […]
Read More A hybrid export model might flyIf development, or the promise of it, won the BJP its imposing political dominance in 2014 and again in 2019, is it now destiny which will maintain the inertia of electoral endorsements? Sustainable Development metrics “Development” is best measured by the 17 Sustainable Development Goals under which there are 169 targets to be achieved by […]
Read More Forget elusive growth, focus on developmentThe film Joker – starring the amazingly versatile Joaquin Phoenix – now playing in the capital’s theaters – is a graphically violent and deeply despairing portrayal of a society sans any empathy for “losers” – those who end up believing they are one. Every society has its share of drop-outs, misfits and the unlucky. Good, […]
Read More Beware a dystopic democracyAmid the doom and gloom of the world economy, there are encouraging signs that the Indian government is now taking tangible steps to reverse the worst aspects of the slowdown in India. Ministers take the lead This is a huge step away from the collective “Nelson’s eye” which was being turned to the crisis earlier. […]
Read More Early shoots of reforms revivalTwo burly, senior citizens – Prime Minister Modi and President Xi doing a tango on the beach at Mamallapuram doesn’t quite evoke the carefully synchronised but fiercely intense passion of this Argentinian dance form. Even the cool looking, athletic Barrack Obama was left with two left feet when he was led onto the floor for a […]
Read More Tango in Mamallapuram