Good Economics,
Risky Politics
Defying the pressures of politics, Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha has come forth with a bold, hard budget. He has committed the Government to a slew of daring economic reforms through this year's budget. But, beyond the initial euphoria generated by sheer promises, lies a rough road to fulfilling them. Will the pressures of coalition politics and an irrational Opposition allow him to deliver?

Interview:
Yashwant Sinha
"It is my budget,
not the PMO's."

Smeltdown
The NDA Government handsomely wins a vote moved by the Opposition in the Lok Sabha against the privatisation of Bharat Aluminium Company (BALCO), but it should now start worrying about the poor response to bidding for strategic partnership of public-sector units.

Progress Report
With an overwhelming response from readers, the CARE TODAY society had funds flowing in from all quarters to aid it in its efforts to help those rendered homeless and jobless by the devastating earthquake of January 26.

Reeling Estate
Gujarat is witnessing a strange phenomenon with the two hands of the Sangh Parivar, the RSS and the VHP, earning public goodwill and the BJP leadership finding itself in the hot seat over links with the building mafia.

Bust to Dust
International outrage doesn't deter the Taliban militia from pushing ahead with its plan to destroy historical statues, including the 2,000-year-old Buddha statues in Bamiyan.

Piecing the
Ahar Puzzle Excavations of sites from the 4,500-year-old Ahar culture provide clues to the link between the Harappans and their predecessors.

In last week's cover story, "It's Politics Stupid!", we were highly sceptical of Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha's ability to negotiate his way through the cross-currents of coalition partners and pressure groups and produce a coherent recipe for economic growth. If the initial response to his budget is anything to go by, Sinha has emerged as the flavour of the month. His budget has clearly generated a mood of wild optimism in industry and among the middle classes. For the third time in a decade, the Sensex climbed sharply after a budget speech. With well-targeted sops, clever sleight of hand, a few tough pronouncements and very good packaging, Sinha has successfully allayed the fears of those who imagined the Government was on a regressive course. Since an economic upturn depends as much on sentiment as objective realities, Sinha has got one part of the equation right. The Government has emerged from the budget with its reformist credentials firmly intact.

That's no reason to drop our guard. With budgets, there is a strange temptation to rush to instant conclusions. But experience suggests that budgets that are ecstatically received or roundly criticised on Day One don't always run their course along predicted lines. P. Chidambaram's "dream budget" of 1997 generated a great deal of initial euphoria but ended up as a damp squib. One of the reasons Chidambaram came a cropper was political uncertainty and Sinha has not yet extricated himself from that tangle. He has committed himself to downsizing government and speeding up privatisation. He has, very bravely, even spoken of reforming India's archaic labour laws. But the forces we identified last week as pulling him back haven't disappeared. They haven't been as vocal as the others this past week but that does not mean they are not readying for battle. To succeed, Sinha still has a big fight on his hands and he needs the unflinching support of the entire Government. In this week's cover story we explain why sensible economics isn't always complemented by wholesome politics. At least not in India. As Associate Editor Rohit Saran, who put together the story, says, "There are things in this budget that are radical enough to trigger a vicious backlash unless handled very carefully." So before we start celebrating the tax cuts and the rising Sensex, it would help to remember the old adage that for everything that is true of India, the opposite is equally true.

(Aroon Purie)

MetroScape
Personality Matters Those behind the Grasim Mr India contest think it is one up over other male pageants.
But is it?
more...

Looking Glass

Mumbai: Swarovski Boutique

Delhi: Colours 'n' Spice

Delhi: Mindscapes

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