Column

Hard miles on fiscal consolidation crossed; can an overly conservative financing plan undo the gains?

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This appeared in the Times of India on 2 February 2026 (link) Sometimes, boring and predictable is good, if not great. The FY2027 union budget ticks that box.Greater certainty of fiscal and regulatory policies for businesses and investors enables them to take business risk – an essential condition to reduce India’s long-term cost of capital. … Read more

Time for consistency and calculated policy risks in Budget

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This appeared in the New Indian Express on 1 February 2026 (link). Published online: 31 Jan 2026, 11:14 pm The 2026-27 budget is being presented at a time of rare macroeconomic stability in India—strong growth with low inflation. This is a result of the government prioritising economic stability over short-term growth imperatives: a conservative and … Read more

No Russian Oil? Likely No Problem

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Post-US/EU sanctions, energy markets aren’t panicking; there’s other supply & India’s macroeconomy can easily adjust This was published in the Times of India on 25 October 2025 (link). In a change of tactics to end the Russia-Ukraine war, the US has blacklisted two Russian oil majors Lukoil and Rosneft. This is designed to prevent foreign … Read more

Coiled for a comeback: Credit revival likely faster this time due to stronger fundamentals

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This was published in the Economic Times on 8 July 2025 (link) RBI has eased monetary conditions, with MPC members talking of ‘the need to support growth’. The focus now shifts to the first step in growth restoration-a revival in credit growth, that is, monetary transmission. How fast can credit growth pick up, and by … Read more

Continued fiscal discipline healthy; what next?

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This appeared in the Times of India on 2 February 2025 (link). The choice of the title in the print version is not mine. Even though the role of govt has shrunk meaningfully over the last three decades, muscle memory of years when GOI had a dominant footprint still builds up expectations around the Union … Read more

How to make India a Product Nation

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This appeared on 1 January 2025 in Outlook Business (link) as part of the cover story on “Chasing Tech Sovereignty” (link). Over the past year, the phrase “India as a product nation” has leapfrogged into public discourse, appearing in manifestoes of political parties, and emerging as a policy priority for the government. To be a … Read more