dimpy.handa
Dimpy Handa
The annual union budget presented by the Finance Minister is generally awaited with as much eagerness as the birth of a new baby. While a baby over his lifespan has tremendous potential to make a real difference, the same, however, cannot be said about the union budget. The budget today is more of an annual tamasha which one has to necessarily go through. Its impact on the life of the people and the economy in general is limited apart from, of course, giving the Finance Minister his two minutes of fame in this media driven times.
For the budget to become meaningful it must go beyond tinkering with figures and political platitudes. It must make fundamental structural changes in our systems, our thought processes and way of working.
A budget must have a theme or an idea around which it is structured. One has to look dispassionately at what holds India back from fulfilling its potential. The answer is very simply the plethora of controls and the transaction costs in every walk of life. The budget must focus on freeing the Indians from all hurdles towards engaging in economic activity, making it easier to undertake business and pushing on to a higher growth path.
The growth of the Indian economy depends on the quantum of investments and the efficient use of the same. Considering that we are already investing upwards of 35% of our GDP, we need to focus on making such investments more efficient. For historical reasons and due to our comfort with outdated 'isms', our economy still remains a controlled and what I call a 'permissions and approval' economy. We need to ensure that the latent energies of the people are unleashed to ensure that India is able to take its rightful place in the global world.
For the budget to become meaningful it must go beyond tinkering with figures and political platitudes. It must make fundamental structural changes in our systems, our thought processes and way of working.
A budget must have a theme or an idea around which it is structured. One has to look dispassionately at what holds India back from fulfilling its potential. The answer is very simply the plethora of controls and the transaction costs in every walk of life. The budget must focus on freeing the Indians from all hurdles towards engaging in economic activity, making it easier to undertake business and pushing on to a higher growth path.
The growth of the Indian economy depends on the quantum of investments and the efficient use of the same. Considering that we are already investing upwards of 35% of our GDP, we need to focus on making such investments more efficient. For historical reasons and due to our comfort with outdated 'isms', our economy still remains a controlled and what I call a 'permissions and approval' economy. We need to ensure that the latent energies of the people are unleashed to ensure that India is able to take its rightful place in the global world.
