Expectations from GST

The ideal GST has just one rate. In the last Council meeting held, it was agreed to have four. This is a step in the right direction as the poor will get some relief. However, simplicity of the structure has been compromised by implementing cess for five year period to compensate the States. Maintaining a…

The state that matters: UP elections 2017

Battle lines have been drawn in Uttar Pradesh, as the regional heavyweights and national stalwarts face off against each other in February 2017. In May 2014, after the 16th Lok Sabha elections, a prominent national daily published an article titled, ‘Regional parties in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have gone voiceless’. It seemed appropriate at the…

Scaling Up the Defence Budget Will Not Make India Combat Ready or Fix Systemic Inefficiencies

The Shekatkar committee report represents a starting point and makes a valuable suggestion – non-combat organisations must be reviewed and restructured. The recommendations of the Shekatkar committee, constituted in May by the defence ministry, were presented in a report to defence minister Manohar Parrikar on December 21, 2016. The report is said to be voluminous,…

Demonetization Episode Shows why Reserve Bank of India cannot be Independent of National Economic Policy Makers

In the wake of demonetization, a debate has emerged on independence of Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Several former Governors of RBI are calling for greater independence of RBI citing the case of demonetization as an example of erosion of RBI’s independence. We would suggest an opposite line. Demonetization shows why RBI cannot be fully…

Calling for a Head

New Delhi : People standing in long queues to exchange their old Rs 500 and 1000 notes and withdraw cash from the ATM in New Delhi on Thursday. We will state our baseline assumption first the “implementation” of the demonetization exercise, though admittedly an historically unprecedented exercise in its scale and timelines, could still have…