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D. Murali

After years of dealing with diplomats and dictators, Jaswant knows how to wear out people. By the time he comes up with his Budget, you would be too wearied to say anything.

FOR those who saw Jaswant Singh on TV all of a sudden on bulletins, and later had to endure his advisers for in-depth comments on the mid-year review (MYR), there is a strange feeling of uncertainty that is encompassing them faster than the morning fog.

Frantic callers ask, "Why now, what's wrong?" but we comfort them saying the Finance Minister had promised to "open up" the entire Budget-making process, and that's why he wants to make policy formulation and monitoring "a continuous effort rather than a once-a-year event". More questions follow:

Is he giving the Budget in bits and pieces?

There is a disclaimer right at the start of the review that it does not purport to be either a Budget or a forerunner to the Budget. While it would be a great idea for some finance ministers in future to think of presenting a Budget like a grand jigsaw puzzle, requiring one to put all the bits and pieces in their right places, the idea of review is to send a clear message: That they are not sitting idle in the North Block.

Why should he do it in the middle of my dinner?

After years of dealing with diplomats and dictators, terrorists and translators, Jaswant knows how to wear out people. First he put Kelkar on the dartboard for all of us to do target practice. Now, he has thrown the MYR at us, to let us have something to chew. This is the key lesson when dealing with a hostage drama — keep talking and tire the hijackers. By the time he comes up with his Budget, you would be too wearied to say anything, and the analysts would have exhausted all their punches.

The overall GDP growth in agriculture, forestry and fisheries could drop to about 1 per cent during the current year from the high of 5.7 per cent recorded 6, the review says. Is there some mistake?

Yes, I checked the pdf file. That `6' is the page number, you dummy.

Please inform me on the informed debate part.

There are two types of debate, one when the debaters don't understand what they're talking, and two, when the audience don't follow what the issue is, or who is supporting what. The first thing happens in places where elected representatives congregate, and the second can co-exist with the first and occurs when you listen to business capsules on TV. What our Minister tries to say is that if you want to say something, first be informed that he knows everything already. So, in the phrase "informed public debate", only one of the three is possible — that is, if you're informed, you won't be the lay public, nor indulge in debate; if you're debating, you're neither the common man, nor the informed; and so on.

Uh, uh, I couldn't understand a few lines.

Possibly, they are the ones such as, "Unanticipated weakening of the growth momentum may affect revenue collections in the absence of appropriate corrective measures," or "indifferent demand from the rural sector because of poor monsoon may, however, act as a restraint on any further increase in manufacturing price inflation." You are not missing much, because what should cause discomfort to you is a line like: "Expenditure management would also pose larger challenges from enhanced food subsidies on account of higher farm support prices, higher fertiliser subsidy from augmented retention prices, larger subsidies resulting from distribution of LPG and kerosene at below market prices and unanticipated expenditure on drought relief." That is why one suggestion that has gone to midreview@finance.nic.in is a request for a contest to spot the longest line.

Another reader says it would be helpful if all percentages were put in one place and English in another. Yet another harried common man wishes to know if the Finance Minister can put all good news in one section and bad news in the second.

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