Yes, the patient Prime Minister is annoyed. He is a soft spoken man, caught without a mandate, to take bold steps and a vociferous opposition, sadly recession glares at us all. It is very well to talk about GDP, but the fact remains in trying times we either need a strong government with a ruling majority or a constructive opposition, in the absence of both, the Prime Minister is going to be accredited with acronyms, which the stalwart doesn’t deserve, I respect Dr. Manmohan Singh.
The ruling government must recognize that every individual plays an important role in enabling the economy. The middle class Indian is always left in a quandary unable to understand the dilemma and call of duty with every turn of the economy. The downturn of the economy has ensnared small traders and business men of the middle class into debt-trap, which the government has not even addressed. Private enterprise however small is what maintains the velocity of money and accelerates the market. These small businesses are innovative and self-reliant and a bit like Lalu’s native-driven intelligence.
The parallel economy may have in an askance way diluted the effect of the recession in the economy, but during the economic downturn the middle class enterprise gets swallowed by money lending sharks, who seem handy option during the loan, but are a burden inversely to the borrower as well as the economy, crippling the middle class. So like Mrs. Gandhi, the newly elected government in Karnataka has to be bold and declare transactions of less than a specified amount like five crores say from unauthorized money lenders, illegal and void. This will revive small businesses, kick-start the economy; escalate the financial system, spawning allied opportunities. Economic activity must not come to a standstill just because of debt; like the government is bound to help the BPL so too they must help with the debts of the middle class citizen or else it will be disastrous for the country. We are talking of debts below five crores. These debts are evil and obscured in deals, which should be vigilantly disposed off. Debts above that amount should be monitored and brought within the lending rates and laws of our banking system. This may be termed as a populist move by the opposition, but it will be beneficial to Indians in general. The new government must take a deko at the middle class monetary health.
(The writer a resident of Jayamahal Extension)