2017 Wishlists

2016 began with the terrorist attacks at pathankot, and ended with the demonetising project. It was an eventful year, and to welcome 2017, swarajya asked a range of experts to draw up their wishlists for what can or should be done in the next 12 months. We hope our package provides you with food for thought and discussion.

- Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan

Five Big Doable Tasks Essential reforms that can be done at a paltry additional cost of 1 per cent of GDP.

THE DEMONETISATION DRIVE launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the developments witnessed since November 8, 2016 are very instructive to every citizen ardently wishing for a better India. Demonetisation is a well-intended bold move touching practically every citizen and aimed at rooting out black money and curbing corruption. It is too early to make informed judgments about the eventual outcomes. But there are already certain early signs: about 90 per cent of the high-value old currency has been deposited in banks; most ordinary citizens have had to endure hardship on account of the failure to make available new currency in exchange for the old; arbitrary, ad hoc decisions on a daily basis have induced fear, uncertainty, mistrust and even ridicule; ubiquitous corruption and a vast, efficient network of parallel economy can be seen or inferred; and trust between the citizen and banking system has been eroded.

We may dismiss them as unintended consequences of a momentous decision touching all people in a vast and diverse nation. But all these travails also expose the capacity deficit of the Indian State, lack of accountability, cavalier and contemptuous treatment of ordinary citizens in daily life, and the general failure of governance as perceived by the citizens. Clearly, the governance crisis cannot be effectively addressed by one person at the helm; it encompasses all branches and tiers of governance.