Maitreesh Ghatak – Author, NDTV.com

Opinion: Opinion: The Big Numbers That Could Decide Whether Mamata Returns

Maitreesh Ghatak | Wednesday April 28, 2021

The BJP is running on the electoral plank of "real change," promising growth and jobs, while the Trinamool is pushing back with its record of setting up various welfare schemes; the Left Alliance has been highlighting the economic hardships faced by

Opinion: So How Bad Is India's Economic Crisis? Brace Yourself.

Maitreesh Ghatak | Wednesday September 02, 2020

One does not need a weatherman to figure out which way the wind is blowing. Whether one goes by data or anecdote, that the Indian economy has been experiencing a contraction - rather than growth - since March 2020 has been evident from all accounts. It has been almost six months since the crisis broke, we are no longer using the strange term "negative growth," and are...

Opinion: Comparing Rishi Sunak's Plan For UK To India's Steps

Maitreesh Ghatak, Swati Dhingra | Monday July 20, 2020

There is an oft-repeated quote - "There is no free lunch" - intended to capture that everything has a price. Britain's Finance Minister Rishi Sunak seemingly dodged this dictum when he presented his summer statement last week.

Opinion: Migrants Certainly Forced Into <i>Atmanirbhar Abhiyan</i>

Opinion: Migrants Certainly Forced Into Atmanirbhar Abhiyan

Maitreesh Ghatak | Tuesday May 19, 2020

A more universal income transfer programme would help both in helping individual cope with the crisis and to create a demand base once lockdown is eased in a staggered and gradual manner. There is still time to reconsider.

Opinion: 3 Points Of Concern On Government's Much-Needed Economic Package

Maitreesh Ghatak | Friday March 27, 2020

We are waging a war against an invisible but common enemy. It is time to put aside our differences - we sink or swim together. And, as in any war, protection of our own, especially the most vulnerable is no less important than combating the aggressors - or what kind of empty victory would we hope to achieve?

Opinion: $5 Trillion Economy By 2024? Magic Realism At Play Given Current Low

Maitreesh Ghatak | Friday January 10, 2020

Yes, we need more comprehensive reforms. But when the economy is going off the rails, pushing it back on track is the main priority, as opposed to improving the quality of tracks so that it can run faster. To achieve that, putting more purchasing power in the hands of billions of consumers and lowering the regulatory and tax burdens on the millions of producers should...

Opinion: No Disguising The Economic Slowdown Now. Take A Look

Maitreesh Ghatak | Monday October 07, 2019

Only last spring, as the country was gearing up for elections, we were hearing about a growth rate of 7 per cent, the highest in the world. Various new statistics were trotted out to suggest that the growth rate since 2014 had been higher than that under the previous regime. Those of us who looked at other economic indicators such as the unemployment rate and growth i...

Opinion: Modinomics - What He Promised And What We Got

Maitreesh Ghatak | Tuesday March 26, 2019

As we approach the 2019 elections, five years after Narendra Modi was elected with a thumping majority on a plank of economic development, no one talks of achhe din or Modinomics any more. Is it a case of mission accomplished - or topic-change out of necessity? How does the Modi government's economic scorecard look if we consider some key indicators of the coun...

Opinion: Rahul Gandhi's New "Game-Changing" Scheme Could Work - If Only...

Maitreesh Ghatak | Wednesday January 30, 2019

The case for building up a social safety net in a country like India where the largest number of the world's poor live is compelling both from the point of view of social justice and political pragmatism. From this point of view, the MIG is a welcome idea. However, designing such schemes has to be done with much care. Otherwise, today's new solution can become tomorro...

Opinion: Modi Supporters, Please See These New Economic Facts

Maitreesh Ghatak | Thursday August 30, 2018

It turns out that overall, the economy under both UPA terms (10-year average: 8.1 per cent) outperformed the Modi Govt (average: 7.3 per cent). Even if we look at the average growth rate under UPA II, a period of so-called policy paralysis, it was marginally higher at 7.4% than that under the Modi government.

Opinion: Sure, Rahul Gandhi Didn't Handle It Well. As For The Question...

Maitreesh Ghatak | Tuesday March 13, 2018

Growth is all about the future while history is about the past. It is important to learn from history but it is also important not to get bogged down in partisan historical debates.

Opinion: Budget Signals No <i>Achhe Din</i> For Those Looking For Jobs

Opinion: Budget Signals No Achhe Din For Those Looking For Jobs

Maitreesh Ghatak | Friday February 02, 2018

All budgets are associated with a sense of resources being scarce and there being trade-offs among competing ends. However, unlike individuals or organisations, government budgets are different. The most obvious reason is that the government constitutes a huge part of the economy. For example, in the latest budget, government expenditure is 13%, and according to lates...

Opinion: When Gujarat Model Fails, Bring In <i>"Padmavati"</i>

Opinion: When Gujarat Model Fails, Bring In "Padmavati"

Maitreesh Ghatak | Friday November 24, 2017

"The Gujarat Model" is back in the news as the election in the state approaches. Elections in a major state like Gujarat are important anyway, but in this instance, there is an added factor: Narendra Modi's rise to the national stage was entirely based on the supposed success of the Gujarat Model under his Chief Ministership for 13 years.

Review Of Jean Dreze's Book, <i>Jholawala Economics For Everyone</i>

Review Of Jean Dreze's Book, Jholawala Economics For Everyone

Maitreesh Ghatak | Tuesday October 03, 2017

If anyone had to write a book with the word jholawala in the title, that would have to be Jean Dreze, because whatever you might think of his views, he is the uber-jholawala, or to paraphrase ustadon ke ustad, the jholawalon ka jholawala.

Opinion: Where Modi Has Gone Wrong With India's Economy

Maitreesh Ghatak | Wednesday September 27, 2017

Modinomics needs serious "modification" and for once, the pun is desperately not intended.

OPINION