Air India more important than aviation industry: More government meddling

Last week, the new Minister for Civil Aviation, Mr. Vyalar Ravi was widely quoted in the media as saying that his “top” priority was to ensure that Air India regains its “lost glory”. Anywhere else, such a statement would have drawn criticism for its partiality towards a single player. However, >>read more…

Of airlines, airfares and the usual Government interference

Despite so much evidence to the contrary, our esteemed ministers remain ignorant about the positive effects of market forces. The latest example of this is the brouhaha (love the sound of that word) over domestic airfares. The Aviation Minister, Mr. Praful Patel publicly came out against the “exorbitant” airfares charged >>read more…

Indian Bond Traders Whine

In India, we have a habit of running to the government (or blaming them) every time something goes wrong. This is no doubt a result of our socialistic upbringing, a legacy most adult Indians find hard to shed – even the most die hard, born-again capitalists!

Today, >>read more…

Have we Indians lost our sense of humour?

Mr. Shashi Tharoor is the latest hapless victim of the “Indian sensibility”. A spate of newspapers delightedly reported how the Minister had been castigated by his bosses for his insensitive comments. Quoting the Indian Express …..’the party told him bluntly to “desist from any comment or action, even >>read more…

Uniformity in Diversity: The tale of Indian GST

During the budget speech (for FY10), the Indian Finance Minister Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, announced that India would move towards a uniform GST (goods and services tax) structure by April 2010. The benefits of such a system are many, proven elsewhere, and enumerated by numerous analysts and experts, and >>read more…