The Times of India

Ever since Queen Elizabeth II asked in July why nobody had predicted the Great Recession, sundry economists have given an avalanche of weak explanations. Phooey. Actually, Queen Elizabeth herself exemplifies the problem. Contrary to her complaint, dozens of economists and […]

Dear Ratan Tata, I cheered when Tata Motors acquired Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR), two global luxury brands. But that acquisition has poisoned your balance sheet, and threatens your whole future. JLR dragged Tata Motors into a net loss of

I became a journalist in 1965, when two successive droughts killed thousands and forced India to beg for US food aid. India’s share of global food aid was so large then that a best-selling book claimed that India was unviable

For decades, the Congress and BJP have jointly nurtured the myth that Britain teamed up with Jinnah to impose partition on India, to institutionalise divide-and-rule even after leaving. No, says Jaswant Singh in his new book, partition was largely due

Swine flu has killed over 20 Indians so far, and may soon claim hundreds, even thousands. That is a tragedy. Even so, swine flu remains a very minor cause of death, far behind other diseases that kill millions. The panic

The world economy is recovering, and the price of oil too. It has crossed $70/barrel, and could return to $150/barrel, if the recovery continues. Can India do anything new to meet this energy challenge? Yes, it can change its exploration

Religion and business rarely mix well. This shows up in the encyclical of Pope Benedict XVI. The encyclical generally supports globalization, but criticises Western companies that outsource business to developing countries. This criticism has an unfortunate ethnic slant. The Pope

In his budget speech, the Finance Minister hailed bank nationalization as visionary and revolutionary. Yet nationalized banks have, by and large, not reached the poor. However, micro-finance is now reaching people whom nationalized banks could not. Households getting micro-credit now

Air India lost Rs 5,000 crore last year, and is surviving on huge government handouts. Opposition politicians are critical, but reject any cut in its bloated staff. Across the world, airlines are reducing staff in the recession. But Air India

Why did the budget cause the Sensex to crash by over 1000 points, and cause global rating agencies to mutter that if India did not pull up its socks, its bonds would be downgraded? Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has gone