Let me enumerate how bad things are. But before you go through them all do remember, I have performed in the past. And I shall strive to do so even in the face of extreme adversity. This is my promise.
1) Our economy is in bad shape- Duh! If you had to be told that then you are one stupid person. We had performed incredibly well over the past decade beginning from the last few years of Atalji's govt because of export led growth. We didn't create incremental jobs. In fact, as the good doctor (my predecessor) would agree it was jobless growth that took place. This makes my task even more difficult as I have to not just deliver growth, but also deliver jobs. Check out what Ruchir Sharma says about the type of growth emerging market economies have had over the last decade. http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/india-forecasts/india-forecasts-top-10-economic-trends-in-2015/351747?curl=1421123064 I know it's NDTV, but Ruchir makes sense. I am gonna lump it.
2) The world economy is in bad shape- We were riding the global boom a decade ago. And the whole world is in tatters right now. People aren't willing to spend money, but I promised you'll the world. Mitron, do have faith in this humble servant. I shall strive to deliver.
3) Banks are saddled with debt- That's a shocker. I called a meeting of all the bankers in the serene town of Pune. They were promised that we won't meddle in their business decision, 'unless they're against in public interest'. But, Mitron they live in hard times. They've funded so many projects which haven't seen light of the day, that they've lost the appetite for funding any new ventures. Yes, SBI did fund Gautam bhai's mining project. But, it was just a one off. And then there were so many questions on that deal. I really like Raghuram bhai. He's finally delivered the rate cut that was needed. Now I need to speak to Jaitelyji and find out how the rest of the investment cycle has to be pushed forward.
4) Wait for our first full budget - Bhaiyo behno, we must wait for the budget before you write off any hope for a revival. There are many goodies in store for all the hopefuls. We shall strive to deliver a 'India first' budget. But to I hear to kickstart the investment cycle, we might have to take up the Keynesian method of running up a deficit and spending money to signal intent.
5) Mininmum Govt Maximum governance - This is one of my core beliefs. But for that we must sell off a lot of our centrally owned companies. You have all seen the drama created by the Coal India Limited employees. They almost created a power crisis in the country. Someone said that I am following the Thatcher way of taming coal workers. But, I am just following my heart and the manifesto I presented before y'all. Watch this space for more on the slogan.
6) Lack of talent - As you may have heard, I am facing a shortage of talent in my cabinet ministers. I am trying to remedy the situation by changing things around, but I am going to deal with this very soon. Hope Mr. Panagariya gets cracking at his new job and gives us actionable policy views. That can help me deal with the lack of talent.
7) The motor mouths - This is not much of a problem but an embarrassment and a distraction. My whole extended parivar thinks that we must go back into the past and chase the irredentist goal of being a homogenous country. I know this is something I have to deal with eventually, but I am busy setting things right in the governance structure. Amit bhai has already sent a notice to Maharajji. I hope you'll show some patience. This humble servant shall keep these morons under check very soon.
