By Jamal Mecklai

While the shock of Trump’s tariffs is wearing out, it is unfortunate that the excitement that this could turn out to be another 1991 opportunity for the Indian economy is also rapidly subsiding. To be sure, the government has cut goods and services tax (GST) and is in wide-ranging discussions with exporters to figure out the most efficient ways to provide support in the face of the sudden obstacle to sales.

However, there is no—or very little—talk about investing in the areas that India really needs to truly build a strong economy. The list of must-haves is well known: land reform, improving agricultural productivity, meaningful employment opportunities, addressing mispricing of power and transportation, the evergreen “ease of doing business”, and, of course, increasing investment in education, health, and R&D.

As it happens, we are in a reasonably good macro position with the government having done well in containing the deficit at 4.8% last year to where S&P gave us a pat on the back; again, there are signs that the government expects to hold this year’s deficit to target at 4.4%. Given this, and the fact that most people expect to feel a little pain as a result of the T-crisis, I believe it is an opportune time to increase investment to bring about........

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