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Tribune News Service
New Delhi, November 29
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday said mere changes in economic policy alone will not help revive the economy as a “toxic combination’’ of deep distrust, pervasive fear and a sense of hopelessness in our society is stifling economic activity and hence economic growth.
With an absolute majority in the Lok Sabha and low global oil prices, this is a once-in-a-generation economic opportunity to catapult India to the next phase of economic development and create new jobs.
“I urge the prime minister to set aside his deep-rooted suspicion of our society and nurse us back to a harmonious, confident and mutually trustworthy society that can revive the animal spirits and help our economy soar,” urged the former PM.
“We need to change the current climate in our society from one of fear to one of confidence for our economy to start growing robustly again,” Dr Singh said while delivering the valedictory at the National Economy Conclave organised by the Samruddha Bharat Foundation and Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Contemporary Studies here.
Speaking as a concerned citizen and as an economist in order to keep politics out, Dr Singh spoke of a palpable climate of fear in the society today that is stifling economic growth.
“Many industrialists tell me they live in fear of harassment by government authorities. Bankers are reluctant to make new loans, for fear of retribution. Entrepreneurs are hesitant to put up fresh projects, for fear of failure attributed to ulterior motives.
“Technology start-ups that are an important new engine of economic growth and jobs, seem to live under a shadow of constant surveillance and deep suspicion. Policy makers in government and other institutions are scared to speak the truth or engage in intellectually honest policy discussions.
“There is profound fear and distrust among our various economic participants. Public trust in independent institutions such as the media, judiciary, regulatory authorities, and investigative agencies has been severely eroded,” he observed.
The root cause of this is the government’s policy doctrine that seems to “suspect every industrialist, banker, policy maker, regulator, entrepreneur and citizen”.
This has halted economic development with bankers unable to lend, industrialists unable to invest and policymakers unable to act, he said.
The Modi government seems to view everything and everyone through a tainted prism of suspicion and distrust through which, every policy of previous governments was considered of bad intent, every loan sanctioned was undeserving, every new industrial project was crony in nature and so on, observed the former PM.
And the government has positioned itself as some saviour, resorting to “foolhardy moral-policing policies” such as demonetisation, that have proved to be disastrous, he said.
For economic growth to revive, Dr Singh wanted the government to enthuse trust and confidence so that businessmen, capital providers and workers to feel exuberant rather than being fearful and nervous.
“This is possible only if the government sheds its current doctrine and begins to trust India’s farmers, India’s entrepreneurs and India’s citizens at large,’’ he suggested.
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