Over the past few days, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi (left) and Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi - both seen as strong prime ministerial contenders for the 2014 general elections and known for indirect jibes at each another - gave us a sneak into their thoughts. A snapshot:

They came, they spoke... will they conquer?

Business Standard

This refers to the editorial "The Iron Example" (April 10). Margaret Thatcher and Indira Gandhi were contemporaries. The former had a market-oriented approach, while the latter pursued a centre (rather a centre-left) path, though a decade or so earlier. Thatcher was a success, and so was Gandhi. However, what worked in the 1970s and 1980s for both Britain and India is not working today - which is not surprising.In fact, India is in the same situation as Britain was when Thatcher took over. The key parameters for the head of the next government due by 2014 are deregulating the economy, encouraging enterprise and risk-taking, and cutting taxes for businesses to incentivise efforts. Individual aspiration also needs to be encouraged. Unions hold on power must be loosened. All these point to Narendra Modi as the most suitable candidate.In Britain, whatever Thatcher did - and failed in - did not prompt a call by the socialists to take the road back to the days of quasi-communism and union st

Letters: A Thatcher for India

Apropos the editorial "Preventing an exit" (April 11), data show how precarious our forex reserve position is. Out of the total reserve of $300 billion, almost half constitute of FII holdings -which is extremely volatile. In a pessimistic scenario, where exports remain sluggish and prices of both crude oil and gold increase, we could even see our reserves being reduced to about half the current levels. Hopefully, such a scenario will not play out, and we may be able to avoid taking resort to IMF funding.P V Rajeev  New DelhiLetters can be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to:The Editor, Business StandardNehru House, 4 Bahadur Shah Zafar MargNew Delhi 110 002Fax: (011) 23720201E-mail: letters@bsmail.inAll letters must have a postal address and telephone number

Letters: Risky forex reserves

The rising insensitivity of political confrontation

Politics of the street

What to do if FII selling becomes a trend

Preventing an exit

An unintended consequence of a few activists manhandling West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra outside New Delhi's Yojana Bhavan on Tuesday was the cancellation of the much-anticipated meeting between the state's chief minister Mamata Banerjee and the media scheduled for yesterday at the state guest house. The "press meet" had acquired significance because of the manner in which Banerjee had converted the attack against her ministerial colleague into a  counter-attack against the  Union government as also the Left parties. The official reason for the cancellation was that the chief minister was unwell, requiring her to return to Kolkata. Banerjee had a meeting with the Planning Commission Deputy Chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Tuesday, in which the state's demand for a 17 per cent increase in its annual Plan outlay was granted. Cynics are wondering if conceding the state's demand for an increase in Plan outlay in its entirety had anything to do with the attack on Mitra before t

Attacking options

That ghost writers are indispensable for ministers, industrialists and celebrities is old hat. Now, it seems, some government officials also feel the need for their services. Since the work cannot be outsourced nor can a ghost writer be hired officially, subordinates are entrusted with the job. If rumours are to be believed, one senior official in the finance ministry is asking her subordinates to attach a "ghost reply" with every file that is put up to her for comments. The buzz is that another official has given the job to a director-level officer to draft replies on plain paper, which she later copies on the official file in her own handwriting.

Ghost story

The publicity given by the finance ministry to some young consultants as the brains behind the Economic Survey has created no little resentment among some officers of the Indian Economic Service. These consultants were listed on the finance ministry's website under the heading "People behind the Economic Survey", which some media reports picked up. The old guard, however, sourly alleges that these consultants (most of them appointed last year) mainly contributed to the second chapter of the Survey titled "Seizing the Demographic Dividend" and were not even allowed to enter the quarantined area during the Budget-making exercise.

No brainers

Apropos Indira Rajaraman's column "Jobs, jobs, jobs" (Economically Speaking, March 24), the author's statement that "unemployment rates rise with the level of education, and the highest rates are experienced among post-school diploma and certificate holders, which presumably reflects their poor employability" is partly true. The unemployed are seeking more years of education. As recruitment is a screening process, it pushes the qualification required for a job. For a clerical job that requires Class-XII schooling, we recruit a graduate or a post-graduate for the post (although some recruiters are trying to bring some change).The Skills Commission is not a supplement to the formal education system. The latter needs to be self-supportive. The commission should cover the large number of youth who are not part of the education system and need to focus on vocational training. Today, vocational training has undergone many radical changes. Formerly, if a student learned carpentry, he would re

Letters: Merits of vocational training

This refers to the editorial "Jobs, jobs, jobs" (April 8). One popular lament has been that the high gross domestic product growth post-liberalisation has been of the jobless kind. Given the anti-business labour laws, businessmen have tended to opt for capital-intensive growth. A possible solution to this problem may be for big businesses to "outsource" manufacturing to small and medium units, since the latter is not subject to many of the stringent provisions of labour laws. Of course, the big businesses should ensure that appropriate skills are available, by way of training, and that quality of the product meets the standards.Kishor Kulkarni  MumbaiLetters can be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to:The Editor, Business StandardNehru House, 4 Bahadur Shah Zafar MargNew Delhi 110 002Fax: (011) 23720201E-mail: letters@bsmail.inAll letters must have a postal address and telephone number

Letters: Jobless growth

This refers to the editorial "Mr Modi's bumpy road" (April 4). Getting into the Parliamentary Board is not enough. Narendra Modi needs to be endorsed as the prime ministerial candidate. If so, more than getting the support of the people for his "Gujarat model", the flaws in it may be exposed. Facing opposition from its secular allies, the Bharatiya Janata Party may even postpone selecting him as the prime minister if it wins in the Lok Sabha elections. In that case, other chief ministers could emerge more powerful. And Modi may not get clearance for the job. Perhaps, his success in Gujarat may lead him to his failure elsewhere on many counts.Jacob Sahayam  ThiruvananthapuramLetters can be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to:The Editor, Business StandardNehru House, 4 Bahadur Shah Zafar MargNew Delhi 110 002Fax: (011) 23720201E-mail: letters@bsmail.inAll letters must have a postal address and telephone number

Letters: Modi's doomed to fail

LAST WEEK WE ASKED: Do you think the MHRD should not interfere with the functioning of IITs and IIMs?

Student's corner

At the Confederation of Indian Industry's annual meeting last week, Sam Pitroda, currently advisor to the prime minister on public information infrastructure and innovations, sounded no less than a soothsayer. On being questioned about the future of the brick-and-mortar universities, he said universities as people knew them today would be dead. "And you can quote me on this... though I'll not be around when that happens," Pitroda said, without commenting on whether this change was good or bad.

Future universities

Not all companies are going to end the financial year 2013 on a bad note. Here are some companies that are expected to not only buck the trend, but also report strong growth for the March quarter. (Click on graphic)

Bucking the trend

The Business Standard awards for excellence put the focus on riding out the storm that has lashed the economyFrom start to finish, the 2012 Business Standard Annual Awards ceremony toasted a resurgent India that is fighting against all odds. Fittingly, in his address as the Chief Guest, President Pranab Mukherjee referred to the award winners as representatives of the indomitable spirit of innovation and enterprise.The guests, who assembled to honour the outstanding businesses and business people of the year, came from far and wide: the President, who was the chief guest, from the national capital, Tata Consultancy Services CEO & MD R Chandrasekaran, recipient of the Company of the Year award, straight from the US and quite a few other award winners and guests from Bangalore, Delhi, Chennai and elsewhere.In a full house at the Ballroom of the Shangri-La Hotel, Mumbai, that meant some guests were forced to stand at the back. There were many familiar faces and famous names including

Toasting a resurgent India

Excerpts from President Pranab Mukherjee's speech at the Business Standard Awards function

'The growth story is intact'

Why Thatcher still matters for Indian politics

The Iron Example

Don't just buy time, address the imbalances

Beware the bond lure

What's the first lesson senior members of Parliament (MPs) teach first-timers in Parliament? House etiquette? Following the party whip? Wrong, according to Rajya Sabha MP from the Bharatiya Janata Party, Tarun Vijay. Addressing an industry meet in Delhi, he said the first lesson he received as a first-time member on the Opposition benches was "how to disturb the House, rather than how to make it function".

Disturbing lessons

At the start of the results season, brokerage firms typically put out reports that indicate what to expect, and the cover page designs usually convey the mood. Anyone in doubt about the prospects for the season ahead should look at the cartoon on the cover page of Motilal Oswal's April report (pictured). The damaged Formula 1 car with the India colours that has veered off the racing track is an apt metaphor for the predicament of the Indian economy, with Finance Minister P Chidambaram, Chief Economic Adviser Raghuram Rajan and Reserve Bank of India Governor D Subbarao sweating over the wheel changes. The tagline reads: "Pit-stop... prolonged".

In the pits?

Apropos Devangshu Datta's column "FIIs climb the Wall of Worry" (Front Running, April 8), domestic institutional investors (DIIs) expect a definite return on their equity investment, failing which they could go for fixed-income securities. As the return on equities is not even compensating inflation, DIIs are withdrawing rapidly. However, foreign institutional investors (FIIs), who receive liquidity at a cheaper rate from their own country which has a nominal inflation rate, have no overriding expectations about the return. They only want their money to grow faster than what it was in their country. They had invested in India, hoping the economy will come out of the bottom. But when the bottom is still uncertain, how can they afford to stay on? Besides, it's time foreign direct investments make up for this losing trend. The myth that FIIs alone would drive the market should be overcome.R K Arya FaridabadLetters can be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to:The Editor, Business StandardNehru Hous

Business Standard

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