BW OPINION   Global Crisis Revisited (14 Aug 2009) IMF’s global estimates show that other than unemployment, most economic indicators have stopped wor-sening, but the end of the crisis   Well-Heeled Beggars (08 Aug 2009) Governments have treated the airline industry as a milch cow; now that it is starving, the heavy imposts it bears should be whittled down   Discomforting Question (01 Aug 2009) Distant though it is, a payments crisis would be a good means to impose discipline on the government’s short-sighted profligacy   A Voice From The Past (25 July 2009) Distant though it is, a payments crisis would be a good means to impose discipline on the government’s short-sighted profligacy   Go Back To The Nano (18 July 2009) As Tata Motors faces hard times, it should accelerate the production of Nano, which would replenish sales without unduly hurting profits   Rational Budgeting (11 July 2009) An ideal tax system would be so simple that it would need no finance minister; a lower division clerk would be enough to run the tax system   Pious Good Wishes (04 July 2009) The Economic Survey displays creditable wish to undo the government’s follies and return to good economics, but its resolve is implausible   Corporate Vulnerability (27 June 2009) Indian companies pass IMF’s stress test in fairly good shape, but it expects GDP growth to slow down much more than the government   Transparency In Credit (20 June 2009) The Reserve Bank’s interest policies have no impact on banks because its paranoia about markets has crippled the transmission mechanism   Checking Robbery (12 June 2009) The UPA government’s new plans to ensure that benefits reach intended beneficiaries are not terribly innovative or promising   Excessive Success (05 June 2009) European Commission has levied huge fines on Intel and Microsoft; has it been fair, or was it being xenophobic?   Doing What You Like (29 May 2009) The new government should remedy some of the wrong policies of the last term — farm loan waiver, NREGS and the fiscal deficit   A Change Of Gear (22 May 2009) The Congress has left competition behind; it should now take a longer view — rein in expenditure and invest in infrastructure   An Interim Solution (15 May 2009) The US government wants to save on the cost of the bailout package, but it may turn out to be inadequate   Fattening Its Sheep (08 May 2009) In its passion for bloating banks’ profits, the RBI has abandoned its real mission of taking finance to the small man and woman   Reading The Slowdown (01 May 2009) It is too early to talk of reversal of decline or resumption of growth, but it is not wrong to read signs of hope — despite the falling rate of growth   Tongues Hanging Out (25 April 2009) Laws work best when they are consistent with people’s goals; if people keep money abroad, it must be because it cannot easily be sent abroad   The Sins Of PE Funds (18 April 2009) As private equity funds’ performance worsens, they will be blamed for many ills that are really the ills of taxation systems   Concerted Action (10 April 2009) RBI, Sebi and Forward Market Commission can learn best international practices in regulation, thanks to the G20 initiative   Slump In Other Climes (03 April 2009) Though there have been deep differences in the course of the three major economies till now, their cycles are getting synchronised   The Debut At Last (27 March 2009) Nano may not have as great an impact on the finances of Tata Motors now as it would have five years ago; but it will change the way Indians travel   Coming Age Of Default (20 March 2009) With the slump will come bad debts, which we prefer politely to call ‘non-performing assets’; this time, it will be bad personal borrowers   Relentless Indictment (13 March 2009) West Bengal would do much better if it allowed private enterprise in many activities now monopolised by govern-ment for ideological reasons   India’s Little Slumps (06 March 2009) The best anti-deflationary policies at the present juncture would be devaluation, and investment incentives to increase indus-trial efficiency   The State’s Empire (27 Feb 2009) The new Right to Education Bill is well designed to increase the cost and worsen the quality of primary education   Inopportune Passivity (20 Feb 2009) The extreme concentration of power under Indira Gandhi persists till today; it is hazardous when the Prime Minister is not well   Matters Of Identity (13 Feb 2009) Instead of wasting money on a national identity card, the government should use the Election Commission to issue identity cards to all adults   Careful Imbreeding (06 Feb 2009) Whilst lifetime employment may make some sense in the government, in banks it leads to the rise of secundate sycophants to the top   Infectious optimism (30 Jan 2009) The advisors of the PM have bought into the campaign of the financial brokers that the crisis will go away after a brief flirtation with India   Mindless Nice Words (23 Jan 2009) It is easy for our rulers to portray the economy in rosy colours; they never experience the hardships of common men and women   The Rescue Operation (16 Jan 2009) Satyam still belongs to its shareholders, not to the government or to the worthy gentlemen it has imposed upon the company   Irrepressible Optimism (09 Jan 2009) The finance ministry reviews the current slowdown with such glee that one fears the day the economy goes into a real crisis   The Good Side Of 2009 (02 Jan 2009) Bad times are good times for some things — like cheaper housing, lower EMIs, better training, more innovation and greater overall competence   New-Style Promoter (26 Dec 2008) It is time to examine the quality of management in the companies that have emerged during India's economic renaissance   Absolutely Shocking (19 Dec 2008) Give every citizen the same amount, and encourage him to spend it as soon as he can; raising purchasing power is today's antidote   Thoroughly Retrograde (12 Dec 2008) Sebi's recent moves to help out mutual fund managers are against the interest of investors, and are apt to destroy their trust in both   Security For All (05 Dec 2008) It is the security of the people that matters; it is not enough for the government to look after the security of its own people and apparatus   Redirecting The Gaze (28 Nov 2008) The time of the global crisis is a good time for helping our neighbours, cementing bonds of friend-ship and turning enemies into friends   A Better Alternative (21 Nov 2008) RBI, instead of reserving the payment card business for banks, should design a market for liquid instruments to serve card issuers   Ready For All To Come (14 Nov 2008) The PM's advice to employers is fraught with the risk of bankruptcies and defaults, but the government can find a solution for every catastrophe   Lost In Minutiae (07 Nov 2008) The Reserve Bank is lost in the thousands of pages of regulations it has created, and keeps making minute and ineffectual changes in them   Robbing Foreigners (31 Oct 2008) Instead of cheating foreigners of their hardearned money, the labour ministry should create a worldclass provident fund industry   Maybe A Tax Dodge (24 Oct 2008) All that Foreign Exchange Convertible Bonds are designed to do can be done with existing instruments — except evasion of income tax   Nano Finds A Home (17 Oct 2008) Bhattacharjee has learnt that the Bengali style of politics repels industry; Modi must learn that even non-Hindus can be great entrepreneurs   From Here To Power (10 Oct 2008) The government should appoint a powerful regulator and leave to him   A Global Central Bank? (03 Oct 2008) The Indian government types never define goals or the logical path to them, and so never have to follow it. They are masters of inactivity   Capitalism Overboard (26 Sep 2008) The exception-ality of the crisis can be gauged from the fact that the US has guaranteed a takeover and nationalised Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac   After The Nuclear Deal (19 Sep 2008) After the NSG waiver, the next step for the government should be to select a few pioneer private firms to import nuclear power technology   Be An Agent Of Change (12 Sep 2008) Repair and rejuvenation of the banking industry are the biggest tasks confronting Subbarao if he wants to leave his mark as RBI governor   Soothing Words (05 Sep 2008) The finance minister, with his cheery manner, is a wonderful lifter of moods. But he studiously avoids tackling the causes of industry’s woes   Will Inflation Gallop? (29 Aug 2008) The committee on oil product prices is telling the government that it has run out of options. If it does not raise product prices, it risks hyperinflation   Independence Day Gift (22 Aug 2008) The government is the only institution which can give its employees a big wage rise every few years and pay it by dipping into others' pockets   A Different Company (14 Aug 2008) The government wants inclusive growth; ITC has worked out how to make growth inclusive. Would the government let it try its hand?   Rigged Oil Market (08 Aug 2008) The govern-ment's stranglehold on the Indian market has made the New Exploration Licensing Policy unmarketable   A Brief Reform Menu (01 Aug 2008) Allow thousands of local busi-nesses to float bonds on hundreds of local exchanges and raise money from local investors   Hidden Numbers (25 July 2008) The real fiscal deficit is two-and-a-half times the deficit revealed by the finance minister; that huge deficit is the root cause of inflation   Fortunes In Descent (18 Jul 2008) The best solution to the surplus of airline capacity would be to give the private sector contracts to build more airports   From The Horse's Mouth (11 Jul 2008) If advisors to the finance ministry were inclined to educate the public, here are some of the important questions they should address   Those Speculators (4 July 2008) If people have too much money, they will throw dice. The remedy for speculation is not control of prices, but control of liquidity   Not Such A Bad Idea (27 June 2008) We need to replace hydro-carbons, which are getting ever more costly and will eventually run out. A carbon tax will prepare us for that future   Lessons Of Ranbaxy (20 June 2008) Its foray into the US market made Ranbaxy vulnerable to hostilities from giant local competitors; Daiichi Sankyo has the cash to take them on   Academic Xenophobia (13 June 2008) Students' choice of firms to do internship with is a function of the firms' efficiency in using the students so as to train them   Lags In Economic News (06 June 2008) If inflation defeats them, those in power can console themselves with the thought that they had four good years they did not deserve   Qualification Test (30 May 2008) Department of Telecommunications has worked out a perfect model of how to tie up an industry hand and foot without any controls   BW Opinion: High-level Turbulence (23 May 2008) An airport is just a two-mile strip of runway with a hangar; there is no reason why a city cannot have a number of airports around it   BW Opinion: Enough Is Enough (16 May 2008) Let the government subsidize rural fixed tele-phones out of its grand boondoggle, which it has called Bharat Nirman   Vehicles In Reverse (09 May 2008) Maruti may survive the imminent recession best, in which case it would have Jagdish Khattar to thank for its strong strategic position   Inflation In Rhetoric (02 May 2008) The surfeit of words in media & politics that inflation has generated is threatened with sudden death if the wheat harvest brings down prices   Unmeasured Inflation (25 April 2008) The wholesale price index is alarmingly out of step with the times.   Slower Euthanasia (18 April 2008) The Rajan Committee has proposed introduction of gradual and limited com-petition; still, government banks will have to change or die   Who Needs Brokers? (11 April 2008) Sebi should run a stock exchange, on which anyone who is capable of paying his debts should be allowed to trade with no hassles of membership   Quantity Vs Quality (4 April 2008) What matters is not the quantity but the quality of government services; and its best judges are those who enjoy or suffer the government's services   A Policy Dilemma (29 March 2008) The temptation to make food imports cheaper may lead the govern-ment to repeat its accidental experiment of Rupee appreciation   A Policy Dilemma (29 March 2008) The temptation to make food imports cheaper may lead the govern-ment to repeat its accidental experiment of Rupee appreciation   The Saga Of UBS (14 March 2008) The proceedings against the Swiss bank and Hassan Ali Khan have been so non-transparent as to smack of a vendetta   Patent Track Changes (07 March 2008) The US Patent Act was always friendly to the patentor; the amendment will make it easier to contest patents, and reduce subjectivity   Uses Of Good Fortune (03 March 2008) This is the time to give tax reliefs, not to raise spending. The taxes that should go first are Chidambaram’s bizarre innovations — FBT and STT   Budget For Bad Times (22 Feb 2008) This is the time to give tax reliefs, not to raise spending. The taxes that should go first are Chidambaram’s bizarre innovations — FBT and STT   Decouple Professionals (15 Feb 2008) The case for giving government servants salaries comparable to the private sector applies only to competent scientists and technologists   In Favour Of Instability (11 Feb 2008) If Reserve Bank stopped supporting the Rupee and sold off its foreign currency reserves, the government could give us a tax holiday   Time For Debt Reform (25 Jan 2008) If the govern-ment ceased to borrow, it would release savings that could add a couple of per cent to the GDP growth - raise it from 9% to 11%   More High-level Folly (18 Jan 2008) RBI’s campaign against ATM charges is incongruous, for its embargo on fresh bank licences is the root cause of banking oligopoly   Has Sense Dawned?(11 Jan 2008) Giving entrepreneurs immediate tax concessions for promises of performance has never worked in the past and will not in SEZs   The Exit Of Partho Shome (04 Jan 2008) Shome’s sad experiment in serving his country has finally ended; maybe he will go abroad, where his expertise is better appreciated   The New Geography (28 Dec 2007 ) It is time to leave linguistic states behind and concentrate development in clusters centred on the most promising cities   PSUs Go Abroad (21 Dec 2007) The Sixth Pay Commission may raise public sector salaries to private sector levels; if it does, it will decisively wreck public finances   Limitless Spectrum (14 Dec 2007) If the ways of stretching spectrum mentioned by Anil Ambani removed its scarcity, DoT may be done out of a job, but everyone will be relieved   Paranoid Crusader (07 Dec 2007) Ramadoss’s crusade against tobacco companies is so ham-handed that it will earn him a lot of curses without stopping anyone from smoking   Bequeathing Bankruptcy (30 Nov 2007) Honestly, the finance minister should reimburse oil companies for the subsidies he makes them pay to consumers, and show it in the budget   Employers, Take Heed! (23 Nov 2007 ) Recent surveys show damning evidence of job discrimination against Dalits, Muslims and tribals. Employers should clean up their act           Articles Blogs Conversations Placements Events