Thought for the day
"Emancipation from the bondage of the soil is no freedom for
the tree."
-
Rabindranath Tagore (Indian, 1861-1941)
Word for the day
Sinistral (adj)
Left handed: Of, pertaining to, or on the left side; left
(opposed to dextral).
(Source:
Dictionary.com)
Teaser for the day
I ask the PM and all his ministers
in the cabinet - "Do they act without "Fear or Favor" and
"Affection or Ill-Will", in accordance with the Oath of office and
secrecy they take before assumption of office?
My five cents
Reportedly, the government has set the ball rolling for budget
preparations little early this year.
From public utterances it appears that the Team Modi wants
FY2016 union budget to be a stepping stone for delivering the election promise
of good governance and faster & inclusive growth.
I believe, like all good citizens, it is my duty to contribute
my five cents for this good cause.
Many of my suggestions may sound repetitive; which these are
indeed. I strongly believe in the doctrine of "perseverance pays".
Therefore, I am persisting with them. I would request my regular readers to
bear with me for few days.
1 Introduce
"reforms"
I believe that it is high time the government, businesses,
investors and people start distinguishing between "administrative
corrections", "systemic efficiencies" and "reforms".
Reforms, in my view, involve fundamental change in the ways and means by which
an objective is sought to be achieved.
2 Put
more money in the hands of consumers
Given the current economic situation, the fastest way to return
to potential growth is to motivate domestic consumption demand. Putting more
money in the hands of consumers is therefore imperative. Employment, lower
taxes, DBT, small ticket large scale schemes
- drinking water to all homes.
3 Focus
on divestment against disinvestment
The government needs to accept that 62% or 52% government
holding in public sector banks changes nothing on the ground. It just helps
fiscal accounting or provides some more capital to be lost for the banks. The
government needs to work on completely divesting most of its monopolies and
businesses, including commercial banking, railways and civil aviation.
4 If
you cannot beat them, join them
The government needs to evaluate whether it is feasible to stop
people travelling to Las Vegas, Macau, Bangkok, and Phuket etc. or stop
students going abroad to second rate universities even in countries like
Russia, China, Australia etc. If it is found infeasible, why not allow a Vegas
or Macau or Phuket or Harvard to be created on Indian shores?
5 Focus
more on services than manufacturing
"Make in India" is a commendable thought. However, at
this given point in time, a capital intensive and material resource intensive
program such as this may not be commercially feasible to implement fast. On the
other hand, focusing on services which are more labor intensive and require
less capital and material resources may be more suited to Indian conditions.
I shall be elaborating on these thoughts in next few days. In
the meantime readers are welcome to contribute their few cents.
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