I mostly agree with the views of Rajeev Srinivasan, but in this I will have to disagree.
The economic slowdown is not because of Marxists or corruption but rather has its origin in last year's lacklustre performance in agriculture.
The real story is not that the GDP growth rate is low at 6.2%, but rather high despite a drought. In the good old days, such a drought would have led to negative growth and high inflation.
I am no fan of Congress and much less the "marxists", but I think the economic team of the Singhs and Chidambaram has done a decent job.
In fact, Mr. Srinivasan has neglected to mention one of the more impressive areas of economic achievement: the continued buoyancy in merchandise and service exports under their watch.
I fully expect the economy to accelerate in the coming months. Although current economic team has not done anything spectacular, like true doctors, they have done no harm to the patient either.
RE:RE: India dimming
by Siby on Aug 06, 2005 08:33 PM Permalink
And what about the matter of the giant differences on the rural landscape between Kerala and the other states? Why have you not responded to Shri Babu Nair on this issue? Ignorance? Never could manage to widen your perspective to glimpse what are, to the casual and dispassionate observer, realities that are so striking? The obvious differences in terms of the extent of poverty, in terms of social advancement like almost fully evolved egalitarianism in Kerala against barely concealed feudalism by default in most of the rest of India, empowered lower middle and poor classes through measures such as much more effective land reforms, glaring differences in effective reach of investments in Primary health care and primary education sectors,etc.? Could it be that you 1. Have never seen anything in your life remotely similiar to Kerala\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s state of development that the latter is too difficult to imagine to be true ? 2. Have never heard of Kerala\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s development ? 3. Believe ardently that Kerala is an example of economic failure due to the relative absence of successful entrepreneurship and industry, thus betraying your ignorance about the larger interests of the biggest slice, the poor.
The economic indicators you mention were not caused by Indian government's Policies. For example exchange rate of Indian Rs.: the US dollar devalued aginst all the masjor currencies in the world during the past year. Iam not an economist and I do not know how much economics that Rajeev has studied. Consumer prices increased mainly becuase of record increase in oil prices in the world market. I can understand Rajeev's sympathy with the India Shining logan holders - the BJP. But the BJP leaders were more corrupt/or equally corrupt as Congress and its allies like Lalu prasad and Ram Vilas Paswan. (Remember Centaur deal? The Tehelka guys who the BJP government ran a vendetta against?. the India shining campaign itelf which spend millions of tax payers money?). Yes the Marxists fail to acknowledge the changes that have happened in the world in last one and a half decade. But at least you /the Indians who live in the US (I live in the US too)have to see that India is not Bangalore or Hyderabad. You do not understand poverty and issues of poor people. Take a trip on a train from Kerala to Delhi. The villages have not changed in the last 50 years(except for Kerala and south India
RE:India dimming?
by Kaushik Das on May 27, 2005 06:36 PM Permalink
Actually, the BJP in power increased eficiency in administration and reduced corruption. IN fact, that is one of the reasons many voted against BJP - because many of us are often corrupt. What is wrong about the centaur deal? Government's work is to administer, not to do business. Let business men do business. Tehelka was a congress-sponsored non issue and totally based on hearsay. Laxman was a non-entity. What about bofors? Why go against the INDIA shining campaign. At least that got the attention of so many investors and gave pride to us, something the progress-hating congress obviously didn't like. But they are no less bad about sonia's, rajiv's (!!) and indira's (!!!) half-page posters. What do you say to that?
The contents of this memo is O.K, but a good citizen of India should always see the "Positive" aspects only and correcting the -points is our duty and not blaming politicians/Govt of emnployees for corruption. Curruption is created and nurtured by each one of us. To get the "work" done we pay extra because we do not want to be a "Q". India Dimming is the idea of people who keeps their side only.
RE:India Dimming
by Thobey Srinivasan on May 21, 2005 05:45 PM Permalink
It appears you have mortgaged your intellect and self-respect to a political group that is heavily depending on leadership imported from Italy.
If not anything else, Uma Bharti, Sadhwi Rithambara and Narender Modi belong to this land and have been in politics on their own strengths and not because they are related to somebody in the party.
It is a sign of secularism and fashionable to denigrate Narender Modi. Do you know that he has provided a clean and efficient administration in Gujarat?
Do you know that Gujarat is one of the states that enjoys the largest FDI in the country?
Have you ever bothered to check out on the effective developmental projects in Gujarat initiated by Modi?
There is absolutely nothing wrong in Narender Modi or Uma Bharathi becoming the PM. They belong here at least; they are not one of those leaders for whom it took 15 years after marriage to give up Italian citizenship
They do not have any cases of smuggling artefacts out of the country pending in any court
They have not shown any favour to Italian or any businessman.
They have not amassed wealth.
Equip yourself with more information before you flaunt your secualr credentials
Your article was so "interesting" that i could not resist following your previous "pieces of art " on rediff . Are u on the rolls of the BJP ? BTW, i am not congressman .
All your so-called analyis is contextually irrelevant.Who so u think will make a better PM ? Uma Bharti ? Sadhvi Ritambhara? Narendra Modi ? And yes, please explain how will you have any such "statesmen" as our PM ? Please spare us of such 5th- Standard -kid in Nagpur- shakha articles;if it may may b called so.
RE:India dimming ?
by rajeev mishra on May 21, 2005 05:57 PM Permalink
no dear, you are the perfect Indian intellectual. and i am sure you would not be lacking at all as the model secular. proud of you. and Sonia Gandhi can be the perfect choice of the model statesman PM. And by any chance don't ever sound like you are a Shakha creature. and don't ever try to know at all about the rowdy RSS. I am sure you know everything about the RSS anyway.never ever pass through the same street where a shakha activity is ever held.a new very affective vaccination against the "rabid nationalism" has come. you are I am sure aware of it having read all about it on internet. and reading a lot of newspapers evey morning and believing every word of it does a lot of good to digestion and keeps your motion smooth. and it keeps your intellectualism also very prim and proper. Thanks. keep it up.
It is sad that the BJP's spin doctors are working overtime to bad mouth the cuurent government. We must understand that the 7% growth is on higher base. Also it is a bit early as well. We must remember that on MAy 17th 2004 ( Black Monday), these same 'experts' predicted doom for the market since their pals were out of power and the market did touch new heights thereafter! These pals would be better off advising their favourite party to at least attend Parliament and dish out the same statistics! That's what they are elected and paid for!!!
Being an indian, he knew the level of corruption and obstructions created by marxists in the government very well. and it is been in india more almost a decade, from vajpayee's 14 days govt. So this has nothing to do with india's growth. speaking of singh and Gandhi - how dare he can say that as a Gandhi's Kitchen cabinet. i am not a supporter of congress, but i respect sonia, since she was the first indian woman politician to say no to prime minsiter's post. may be she had some political reasons behind it, but this was a good move in terms of helping the nation, otherwise BJP would have created a nation wide riot on this issue. the author seems to be more a liker of hinduist ideologies, thats why he has never mentioned about all the faltering that happened in previous vajpayee govt. and atlast about singh, he is a doctrate at cambridge one of the great institutes of the world. you should not speak so badly of a man, who has the cherisma to rule the nation, we have lallu, but we also had fernandes,we had narasima rao, we had vpsingh all have been accused before for corruption, but still it didnt put any control on india's growth.i have my full confidence on Dr.singh and his govt.
RE:it seems to me the author lost his mind.
by Kaushik Das on May 28, 2005 12:24 PM Permalink
Well, retract your respect, then. She said NO to the post because it would have put her under a lot of pressure. Reporters, the opposition, bureaucrats, foreign dignitaries, et al would have had a field day playing with her statements and answers. Also, her saying NO got her more sympathy (like rajiv's death in 1991) than her saying YES. Her saying YES would have raised the foreigner issue strongly, even among congress supporters. If she had to say NO, why didn't she say NO to 10, Janpath, which she should have vacated long ago? Why didn't she say NO to politics itself? Or to any of her family joining politics itself? Why didn't she say NO to her children studying abroad when her family ruled India?
RE:it seems to me the author lost his mind.
by Prakash on May 29, 2005 03:21 PM Permalink
Kaushik Das somewhere along the line you have lost the plot. Sonia was not interested in Power directly - her sole interest was that those rabid funadamentalists who were spreading their poison through the country had to go. That was why she came out of retirement when the noble Sitaram Kesari was getting nowhere - took on 'her crown of thorns' of being an Italian by birth to even take the Congress a couple of steps back in the second last election. However she was made of sterner stuff and did not give up. She travelled the length and breadth of the country - and COMMUNICATED to the people of India the grave danger posed by these Sangh Parivar rabble and earned their respect AND their vote. You see this got the NDA booted out of power. They also expected her to be Venal like they were - I mean CHOR ke nazar me sabhi hai chor! They did think they could keep the issue boiling and undermine the government until the next General Elections were held. However her rejection of the Prime Minister's post - as something she never really hankered for but what she wanted was the Communal, Sick, Unprincipled and Venal NDA out. They were corrupt in addition to being communal and rightly OUT.
RE:it seems to me the author lost his mind.
by Gauzbig on May 29, 2005 12:24 PM Permalink
Dont forget that Sonia Gandhi said no to politics for a long time.
She was against her husband joining politics.
She herself was averse to joining politics but could not sit and watch the RSS and the BJP take the nation to the brink of disaster.
As she mentioned to Shekhar Gupta in walk the talk. Everytime she walked past the pictures of her slain mother in law and husband she realised that she was walking away from her responsibility to them and thier people and their death would be in vain. Indira and Rajiv would have fought tooth and nail, the division, communalism and complete havoc the NDA was wrecking in its hubris driven agenda and exclusivist economic policies.
As to why she allowed her children to study abroad. Her children were privately tutored for sometime due to the security threat the family faced in India. The security threat could have put the educational institutions and the other students to grave risk , they should have persisted with an Indian education to prove a point?
Rajeev, I agree and am aware of your pro BJP leanings having been reading your articles during the governing years of BJP, sorry NDA. This article of yours has absolutely no content barring the blatent intention of opposing and critcizing for the sake of it. Saying this, I must admit that I am certainly not a fan of the congress, I would only like the best governance for India. I wished and hoped for several years that BJP would do it. they frittered away a golden opportunity by proving that they can be as stupid and as corrupt in terms of governance as teh congress. Now they can only sit in opposition and cry hoarse like you do for them. Look back at the track record of what teh BJP gave except for good propoganda and jazzy ads of India Shining. There is little they did to change governance at gass root level. What is the agenda, does any party have a clear one point agenda. Easy to list common minimum program etc.. One point agenda a colleactive goal. Maybe it is time to leave Hindu and Ram Rajya and all that stuff and take a leaf out of People' action Party' agenda over teh years in Singapore as a learning rather than to repeatedly crib about the Congress.
This is the wonderful Pessimistic way of looking the growth of India. FYI india was not grown because of policies or politics. Its all in the hands of the young and atractive inteligent low paid workers. What ever the governemnt does will be forced by the growths and challenges of the industry. No one can out beat it. Just in a growth of 50 years u need to come up as a super economy power. Its a learning pace for India. Y cant u guys understand this. Be a optimistic Indian.
The author has a distinct dislike to anything connected to Congress, communisim and non hindu religions. And his writings continously drip of this negativity. Please Mr. Srinivasan put a full shot at least some times, don't you get tired and emotional drained just have this one point agenda all your life ? What purpose are you serving by repeatedly saying the same thing in a different way. It is simply speaking an agenda that states BJP is goodm hindutva is good rest is bad, makes me a little tired.
