Not the best of times

The government must devise appropriate strategies to counter the threats

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times” were the words with which the classic A Tale of Two Cities began. Something not very different seems to confront us in India today. On the one hand, we have a well-established and popular leader with unmatched following promising to lead his country to growth; even demonetisation, painful to everyone, will ultimately bring hitherto undisclosed wealth to account. On the other, many, purporting to be his followers, decry everything modern or remotely developmental. So, what is happening is a question that might well be asked.

But this is not