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Postscript

Niti Aayog’s dismal failure holds for the next 12 months. This resource mobilisation
proposal has been repeatedly sent to the PMO and Niti
Aayog, without acknowledgement or response.
HOOT FIRST AND INVESTIGATE LATER. THIS The national interest demands that a sum of Rs.8 lakh
seems to be the modus operandi of the BJP/NDA crore is immediately disbursed to 150 million households
Sgovernment, vaulted to power at the Centre with a by printing notes, and recovered in the next Union budget
landslide victory in 2014. Two years later, prime minister by implementing the EducationWorld schema (vide www.
Narendra Modi made a dramatic announcement on No- educationworld.in). My credentials are good. I was the
vember 8, demonetising high value currency notes. The founding editor of Business India and Businessworld —
unstated prime objective of the demonetisation initiative India’s first two business magazines.
was to delegitimise large cash hoards believed to have Moreover a word of advice to the country’s insecure
been accumulated by the routed Congress party during its media pundits and passive intellectuals: Even if you can’t
ten-year rule (2004-2014) at the Centre. support the EW emergency resource mobilisation and
The stated objective was to delegitimise black money disbursement proposal, let’s debate it. The unprecedented
piles of industry tycoons, businessmen, anti-socials, Covid-19 challenge confronting the Indian economy
terrorists, smugglers, gangsters, and to usher in a digital requires intensive deliberation. This is the time to think
cashless economy. Evidently the overweening mandarins beyond the box and speak up. The national interest de-
of the government think tank, Niti Aayog, established mands it.
in 2014 to replace the 64-year-old Soviet-style Plan-
ning Commission, failed to warn the prime minister and
cabinet about the repercussions on 90 percent of the Sleeping keystone cops
country’s working population in the informal sectors
of the economy — farmers, small scale industry, retail OR RANA KAPOOR, FORMER HIGH-FLYING
trade and daily wage labour — heavily dependent upon promoter-chairman of the private sector Yes Bank
the cash economy. Thousands of small businesses and Fwhose Rs.10 face value equity share was quoted
farmers across the country were wiped out and millions at Rs.285 in its heyday and attracted public deposits
of daily wage labourers died of starvation. Mysteriously of Rs.227,610 crore, the fall from grace was swift and
over 95 precent of the delegitimised high value notes were vertiginous. It has come as a great setback for monitors
legitimised before D-day, rendering the whole exercise of the floundering Indian economy — including your
fruitless. editor — pressing for the privatisation of the country’s
Four years later reacting to the new coronavirus dysfunctional 27 public sector banks (PSBs) which since
pandemic sweeping the world, in a national broadcast on they were ill-advisedly nationalised way back in 1969,
March 24, the prime minister announced a countrywide have been a major drag on the high-potential Indian
lockdown giving four hours notice, confining all citizens economy. The exposure of this Rutgers University
to their homes for 21 days. Again Niti Aayog failed to alumnus with decades of experience with Bank of
advise the PM and cabinet of the likely impact of the America and later the Netherlands-based Dutch Rabo
lockdown on the 90 percent working in the informal Bank, as a common cheat, is a bad advertisement for
economy who would suffer loss of daily wages, in private enterprise.
particular migrant labour which is obliged to scour the Now a rising mountain of evidence is emerging that
country in search of low-paid employment. Kapoor was clearly afflicted with a common infirmity of
Because of post-independence India’s foolish embrace successful Indian — especially North Indian — business-
of sterile socialism, over 100 million of the poorest of so- men: effete epicureanism, i.e, excessive materialism and
ciety are forced out of their rural homes to work for daily greed for the good life. This translated into purchase of
wages in distant parts of India. They can’t stay “at home” extravagant homes and bungalows in Delhi, Mumbai,
because they live on their working sites. And following London and elsewhere abroad and hosting lavish par-
the lockdown order, couldn’t get back to their villages be- ties round the year. This jet-set lifestyle cannot possibly
cause all public transport was shut down. With no faith in be supported by salaries of even best paymasters among
the powers that be, millions of these indomitable citizens publicly listed companies.
started trekking towards their villages even as the Central Therefore to pay for his deadly sin of avarice, Kapoor
and state governments blamed each other for not foresee- vastly expanded the lending operations of Yes Bank. The
ing massive unemployment, wage loss and malnourish- bank’s total advances increased from Rs.55,633 crore in
ment they would suffer. 2014 to Rs.241,500 crore in 2019. Moreover he started
To tide over low income households and daily wage massively advancing Yes Bank depositors money to
migrants during the lockdown, the Union government has troubled, struggling companies in desperate financial
announced a pathetically inadequate Rs.1.70 lakh crore straits — Anil Ambani’s ADAG, Zee Entertainment, De-
relief package. Against this your editor has repeatedly wan Housing Finance — which were arm-twisted to pay
sent a detailed schema to mobilise Rs.8.09 lakh crore for huge kickbacks into shell companies promoted by Kapoor
education and health by cutting establishment and de- and his socialite wife.
fence expenditure, middle class subsidies, disinvestment The wonder is that it took India’s keystone cops —
and imposition of modest flat taxes on income tax payers. Reserve Bank, SEBI, Enforcement Directorate, income
Redirection of this package proposed by EducationWorld tax authorities — who are paid to monitor the financial
last month (March) would make direct cash transfers of markets, so long to unravel Kapoor’s simplistic swindle.
Rs. 4,444 per month to 150 million hard-pressed house- Elementary, my dear Watson!

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