Recovery is here, now for reforms

The recent uptick in economic activity is heartening, but urgent reforms are needed for growth to be sustained

The economy is showing clear signs of improving. Monthly sales tax revenues have crossed the Rs 1-trillion mark, manufacturing indicators have rebounded, and even sluggish capital-intensive industries have seen something of an uptick. 

Better still, some areas that had been persistently lagging are finally improving. The service sector is beginning to expand. And while rural demand held strong over the summer, urban demand is catching up, too. 

But growth is as much created by supply. And there is some good news there as well. Through the pandemic, three supply-side constraints hurt activity, namely logistics, labour and funding. 

Thankfully, logistics and labour constraints have