A DOWNGRADE AT THIS JUNCTURE COULD BE THE ANTIDOTE
By Ruma Dubey
Disappointing would be putting things very lightly. It is preposterous and grossly ugly.
The much needed railway fare hikes have today been rolled back. The new Railway Minister, Mr.Mukul Roy naturally needed to keep his firebrand leader happy and it comes as no surprise to know that the first thing he did after being sworn in, was roll back the fare hikes. After all, that is the sole purpose for which he was brought in and Mr.Trivedi was booted out.
We are not even able to get by with a minimal railway fare hike so how can one expect the Govt to hike fuel prices? Now that we know that it is all about politics, this roll back has makes it clear that any important economic decision, which will result into a price hike for the ‘aam aadmi’ will not go through. Infact one wonders if the Govt will even have the gumption to announce price hikes, forget getting it passed! Mamata allowed a 10% freight hike to go by, which infact is more steep but not a passenger fare hike? The very same aam aadmi was all for the fare hike. The Indian Railway union itself wanted a fare hike. So who is this ‘aam aadmi’ that Mamata is fighting for?
This politics of coalition is at its ugliest; especially now when we are staring hard at a large fiscal deficit. Global crude prices are expected to shoot through the roof. Can Mamataji please get them to roll back the price of crude? Yes, if she can use her defiant stance and get crude prices down, which does affect all aam aadmi’s around the globe; now that would be a feat worth lauding! Naturally, she will not because she simply cannot and no one will pay heed. Why? Because they do not need to kowtow to her like the way UPA is doing!
This roll back of railway fares is depressing to say the least. This roll back alone indicates that the Govt will do anything to keep its power; two hoots to economics! The FM did nothing in the Union Budget. Yes, his budget is inflationary, more so for the middle class and the rich. So does this mean that in this era of UPA, one should be poor, ideally a farmer because Mamataji will protect you but never a middle class and surely never a rich; that would be a curse!
Economically, we are nearing a complete mess and if this is how every decision is going to be handled, then things will only get worse. 2013-14 will be an election year and if this is how things will work till then, well, it could get ugly.
At this juncture, taking the risk of sounding unpatriotic, it would be good if the international rating agencies downgrades India and FIIs threaten to leave. That will not only wake up the UPA but might also give them the guts to stand up for economics. S&P, Moody’s might as well swoop down on India, giving statements as to how lack of policy decisions to bring down the fiscal deficit led to the downgrade. And yes, we need this international criticism for the way business is being conducted by the Govt. RBI alone cannot save the country’s economics.
Actually, it is because of an intense sense of patriotism that this wish for a downgrade. After all, if we love someone, we should have the ability to criticize and correct, or else, that love could kill.