RABINDRANATH TAGORE PEERS over his shoulder as a silent spectator to the conversation. In fact, Tagore seems to be a constant companion, beyond his pride of place on the wall in Kaushik Basu's study. A former chief economic adviser (CEA) who has not hit controversy—a rarity these days—Basu is back in academia at Cornell University. His morning has been “punishing” and the Zoom interview has been pushed back 15 minutes for him to grab a coffee.
Basu's stints in the government (CEA from 2009 to 2012) and the World Bank (chief economist from 2012 to 2016) have been turned into a rather dauntingly titled Policymaker's Journal: From New Delhi to Washington, DC and he is bound to make headlines for his rather candid take on the economy. “An economy which is on the rise, it is too early to tell, but it is floundering right now,” says Basu, who recently received the prestigious Humboldt Research Award.
He faithfully kept a diary; hurried, and sometimes, illegible notes detailing his experience—slightly wide-eyed, baffled with the vivid colourful descriptions of life in North Block. His observations are delightful, honest, philosophical and always amusing. “I decided right at the beginning that I have to record it,” he says. “It was the shock of life in government and North Block, which was completely different to my world, the flat world of academia where I had spent my career.”
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة July 18, 2021 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
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هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة July 18, 2021 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
William Dalrymple goes further back
Indian readers have long known William Dalrymple as the chronicler nonpareil of India in the early years of the British raj. His latest book, The Golden Road, is a striking departure, since it takes him to a period from about the third century BC to the 12th-13th centuries CE.
The bleat from the street
What with all the apps delivering straight to one’s doorstep, the supermarkets, the food halls and even the occasional (super-expensive) pop-up thela (cart) offering the woke from field-to-fork option, the good old veggie-market/mandi has fallen off my regular beat.
Courage and conviction
Justice A.M. Ahmadi's biography by his granddaughter brings out behind-the-scenes tension in the Supreme Court as it dealt with the Babri Masjid demolition case
EPIC ENTERPRISE
Gowri Ramnarayan's translation of Ponniyin Selvan brings a fresh perspective to her grandfather's magnum opus
Upgrade your jeans
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Garden by the sea
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RECRUITERS SPEAK
Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates
MORAL COMPASS
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B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH
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COURSE CORRECTION
India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI