'Budget 2020 Not What Economy Needs at Moment, Govt Seems in Denial’: Shankar Acharya
- 3 years ago
In an interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire, Prof. Shankar Acharya, former CEA and former Chairman of Kotak Mahindra Bank, says the budget “lacks clear direction” and is not “really what the economy needs at the moment”. He suggests that the budget’s problems arise out of the fact that the Finance Minister did not begin her budget speech by clearly expressing the problem the economy faces as well as its extent and scale. He believes she needed to do this not just because it would give confidence that the government understands but also it would, thereafter, provide a sense of direction in terms of the steps that need to be taken as well as give the strength and confidence to implement them.
He says perhaps the Finance Minister chose not to explicitly state the size and extent of the problem in her budget because she thought it might discourage people if she did that. Prof. Acharya says that properly and fully stating the problem would actually have given reassurance and confidence.
Asked about how effective the government’s investment based strategy to boost growth is likely to be, Prof. Acharya suggests that this is more like what you expect in a normal year rather than a response to a crisis. Whilst he welcomes the government’s commitment to invest 100 lakh crore in infrastructure over the next four years he says that the increase in government capex of 18 per cent this year does not look like a response to a crisis. He says this is “normal”.
Like our work? Click here to support The Wire: https://thewire.in/support
The founding premise of The Wire is this: if good journalism is to survive and thrive, it can only do so by being both editorially and financially independent. This means relying principally on contributions from readers and concerned citizens who have no interest other than to sustain a space for quality journalism. As a publication, The Wire will be firmly committed to the public interest and democratic values.
We publish in four different languages!
For English, visit www.thewire.in
for Hindi: http://thewirehindi.com/
for Urdu: http://thewireurdu.com
for Marathi: https://marathi.thewire.in
If you are a young writer or a creator, you can submit articles, essays, photos, poetry – anything that’s straight out of your imagination – to LiveWire, The Wire’s portal for the young, by the young. https://livewire.thewire.in/
You can also follow The Wire’s social media platforms and engage with us.
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/TheWire/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireHindi/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireUrdu/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireMarathi/
Twitter
https://twitter.com/thewire_in
https://twitter.com/thewirehindi
https://twitter.com/TheWireUrdu
https://twitter.com/TheWireMarathi
https://twitter.com/livewire
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/thewirein/
https://www.instagram.com/livewirein/
Don’t forget to hit the subscribe button to never miss a video from The Wire!
He says perhaps the Finance Minister chose not to explicitly state the size and extent of the problem in her budget because she thought it might discourage people if she did that. Prof. Acharya says that properly and fully stating the problem would actually have given reassurance and confidence.
Asked about how effective the government’s investment based strategy to boost growth is likely to be, Prof. Acharya suggests that this is more like what you expect in a normal year rather than a response to a crisis. Whilst he welcomes the government’s commitment to invest 100 lakh crore in infrastructure over the next four years he says that the increase in government capex of 18 per cent this year does not look like a response to a crisis. He says this is “normal”.
Like our work? Click here to support The Wire: https://thewire.in/support
The founding premise of The Wire is this: if good journalism is to survive and thrive, it can only do so by being both editorially and financially independent. This means relying principally on contributions from readers and concerned citizens who have no interest other than to sustain a space for quality journalism. As a publication, The Wire will be firmly committed to the public interest and democratic values.
We publish in four different languages!
For English, visit www.thewire.in
for Hindi: http://thewirehindi.com/
for Urdu: http://thewireurdu.com
for Marathi: https://marathi.thewire.in
If you are a young writer or a creator, you can submit articles, essays, photos, poetry – anything that’s straight out of your imagination – to LiveWire, The Wire’s portal for the young, by the young. https://livewire.thewire.in/
You can also follow The Wire’s social media platforms and engage with us.
https://www.facebook.com/TheWire/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireHindi/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireUrdu/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireMarathi/
https://twitter.com/thewire_in
https://twitter.com/thewirehindi
https://twitter.com/TheWireUrdu
https://twitter.com/TheWireMarathi
https://twitter.com/livewire
https://www.instagram.com/thewirein/
https://www.instagram.com/livewirein/
Don’t forget to hit the subscribe button to never miss a video from The Wire!