Page 8 - Weekend Ruminations

Advice for shoot-from-the-hip nationalists: Take aim before firing

It's all good to be tactical - keep China out of strategic markets; hit back in the same coin if it looks to keep India's key sectors out - but don't shoot yourself in the foot, writes T N Ninan

Beyond alliteration: The PM's knack for wordplay, and economic realities

Anyone can string together alliterative words, but are they a substitute for serious thought and coherent action? Real economics involves choices, or every day would be Christmas, writes T N Ninan

Why Centre is left with little fiscal cushion to deal with Covid pandemic

When emerging from this crisis, the govt must consider a fresh approach to reviving growth, revisiting the Centre-state fiscal balance, and devising a re-imagined GST 2.0, writes T N Ninan

Real is radical: Drop subsidies, offer basic minimum income to farmers

You could run a sensible subsidy and price support system at a fraction of today's cost, and still have enough money left over to offer a more generous income support to all farmers, writes T N Ninan

His son's father: How Mukesh Ambani has re-invented Reliance yet again

The govt matters less in brand and tech businesses, where consumer preferences and the building of a franchise are autonomous of policy, though policy does help in some ways, writes T N Ninan

Covid-19 big picture: Brace for a disaster much bigger than you expected

If the business of doubling rate continues as it is currently, be prepared for bad news not just from the perspective of the coming medical challenge but also for the economy, cautions T N Ninan

Jobs as memory: Don't invite new anarchies on top of that wrought by Covid

Will people buy as many cars as before? How much office space becomes surplus as office-goers work from home? How will that impact construction? T N Ninan raises some questions the future invites

Why can't Congress recognise the realities and offer realistic solutions?

Rahul Gandhi's two recent video performances offer little hope - the first fell flat in attacking govt 'strategy'; and the second showed him in a position unbecoming of a leader - writes T N Ninan

Covid-19 is unravelling the intolerable dichotomy of India's labour market

There was a time when pay cuts we see today were a complete no-no; govt and public sector jobs were considered safe, as pay and pensions were both assured. Not any longer, it seems, writes T N Ninan

Dangerous crossroads: Extraordinary steps have the habit of becoming habits

Printing money to fund crisis measures is not without risk; countries like the US might get away with it, but the price for excess is always greater for a developing country, writes T N Ninan

Covid-19 and Indian economy: Do please light your lamps as lights go out

After the health crisis, India's fiscal stress will increase as revenue falls and crisis-driven expenditure goes up; some key numbers may get worse than in the 2008 financial crisis, writes T N Ninan

Schools for scandal: No silver-bullet solution for India's financial sector

The cure might lie in things like improving market intelligence, responding to early signals, improving efficacy of prosecution, and understanding structures and inter-dependence, writes T N Ninan

Fast trains at slow speed: Why railway privatisation should not be hasty

The experience with 50 stations and 150 trains should be a learning experience, helping frame sensible rules that are not unfair to new operators and also don't attract criticism, writes T N Ninan

Beyond green shoots: How to ensure speed and quality of economic recovery

Unless key issues are addressed, even if growth bounces back from the sub-5 per cent, it will stay lower than the already inadequate long-term average of 6.6%, writes T N Ninan

Look back in anger: Why aren't economists setting down roots in India now?

The economic refugees of earlier years have been replaced by well-placed people leaving (or staying away from) India's unattractive political economy, writes T N Ninan

Yes, only 15 million Indians pay tax; but who is to blame for this?

It is Mr Modi's govt that has added to the problem, and it can resolve it, only if it has the stomach to ignore the inevitable howls of protest from a very vocal middle class, writes T N Ninan

Why India's present slump is a more serious issue than earlier slowdowns

What is unusual about the current period of slow growth is that it has come without an exogenous driver, unlike all previous periods of slowdown, going back 50 years, writes T N Ninan

Economic Survey should deal not just with 'Whats' & 'Whys' but also 'Hows'

Survey lessons like exports' importance for growth and jobs, how govt intervention in markets can be harmful, and wealth creation via privatisation should have been imbibed long ago, writes T N Ninan

Budgetary over-reach: There is a price for trying to do too much in Budgets

The larger economy suffers more than the central govt, as New Delhi is allowed to get away with behaving arbitrarily and then hiding the reality behind bogus numbers, writes T N Ninan

A lesson to learn: Economic problems can have counter-intuitive solutions

From drug price ceiling to additional duties on steel imports and export ban to counter onion shortage - govt response to several problems shows the lessons may not have been learnt, writes T N Ninan