Warlike fortification of approaches to Delhi with nails, concertina and concrete is lousy politics, lousier optics. It shows the government is paranoid and insensitive. This is no way to deal with protests in a democracy. Turning your capital into a barricaded fortress in the 21st Century is a bad joke.
Swimming pools have opened, so should physical court hearings
Chief Justice S.A. Bobde must ensure physical court hearings begin sooner than March, now that India is re-opening swimming pools, cinema halls and schools. E-courts served well during a difficult year, but was often a closed system, and hurt junior lawyers disproportionately. It’s now time to restore speed and transparency.
Infra push for poll-bound states is pragmatic populism but must not neglect other regions
Push to infrastructure in poll-bound states in Union Budget 2021-22 is pragmatic populism. A 24×7 politician like PM Modi never loses sight of elections. But he deserves credit for abandoning the sop route to woo voters. This mustn’t, however, imply neglect of other states, creating a new electoral caste system.
Paperless Budget right step but transition needs fool-proof digital security
India’s first paperless Budget is the right step. Now, the government should move bulk of the work online, ending its notorious culture of piling up files. But government sites have been hacked and even senior officers continue using personal emails. The transition can’t occur without first ensuring fool-proof digital security.
Finance Commission should be applauded for incentivising demographic performance of states
Fifteenth Finance Commission chief N.K. Singh should be applauded for keeping his promise to not hurt southern states on tax transfers because they’ve done well on managing demographics. Laggard states should see the commission’s 12.5% weightage for demographic performance in calculations as an incentive to catch up with the south.
Budget’s transparency in fiscal deficit is refreshing. But it must extend to all economic data
Modi government’s decision to be transparent about the real fiscal deficit and not hide food subsidies in the Budget is refreshing. But it’s only a beginning. The same transparency should be extended to all economic data. That is the best way to reassure investors and respond to global rating agencies.
About the ridiculous fortification around Delhi, maybe the Modi-Shah government knows something that we don’t. Maybe there’s a threat of an ACTUAL COUP!!
That only the Indian Express can tell us …
A paperless Budget brings back childhood memories from Poona. The official document would be sent from Delhi by registered post, a few days in advance. An act of implicit faith in the integrity / infallibility of the postal department, since in those days the document contained far more sensitive information than it does today. It would be placed in the office safe. It was only after father and his colleagues heard the FM start making his speech on their transistor that they would open the parcel with due ceremony. Then would begin a rush to contact all the manufacturers who had dutiable goods in their godowns, which might attract changed rates from midnight.
The situation / face off with the farmers is unravelling. Not heading towards an outcome where wide ranging agricultural reforms, leading eventually to change of cropping patterns, can be expected to succeed. Straining the social fabric, including in Punjab, at a time of external peril. In practical terms, there is little difference between an eighteen month stay and a repeal. In either contingency, new laws will be re-enacted, through a process of wider consultation. A time for both statecraft and statesmanship.
The number of seats in the Lok Sabha for different states has been frozen as per the 1971 census, now due for reconsideration.There is a compelling case for extending that indefinitely, perhaps coterminous with the duration of the policy of reservations. In the intervening period, one set of states has produced more GDP, the other more citizens. Setting up a creative tension between them. So one applauds the Finance Commission.
THREATENED BLOCKED OF A CITY IS ACT OF WAR and MUST BE DELT WITH AS SUCH.
If one chooses to call it politics yes it is LOUSY POLITICS played with sticks and weaponized tractors.