Helping Canada with coronavirus vaccines is the Indian headline after the Trudeau-Modi call, but there are other substantive points in Ottawa’s readout: the first Canadian embrace of ‘Indo-Pacific’ and India as a strategic partner. Good that two important nations with shared interests rise above vote bank pressures and bhangra-fied trivialisation.
Disengagement at Pangong Lake good news. Rajnath Singh pragmatic to acknowledge hard reality
Early days, but confirmation of synchronised disengagement on the banks of Pangong Lake is good news. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s statement in Parliament is clear and measured, but acknowledges hard realities. He asserts not an inch is lost, but pragmatically underlines that friction points remain and India-China negotiations are ongoing.
Modi questioning why IAS officers run PSUs, it shows respect for entrepreneurs
By questioning why IAS officers should run PSUs, PM Modi has done two things: Seek respect for entrepreneurs and put the bureaucracy’s role in perspective. Delicious irony this, coming from a leader who’s done more to empower the IAS than any predecessor. But, never too late for a good epiphany.
If we do not want IAS officers – who run India – to run PSUs, the simple, elegant solution would be for the government to stop owning / managing enterprises. What competence does the government system possess to run a steel mill that exceeds Mr Ratan Tata’s. One would not wade into the generalist vs specialist debate, for that has been done to death. If anything, there are too many engineers, now even a few doctors, in the services. The idea of lateral entry is not worth a packet of potato crisps. 2. If there is a growing sense of inadequacy, a recognition that things are not glittering, nor does transforming India and its governance seem like the walk in the park it did on the campaign trail, the reasons lie elsewhere.