The colourful lives of economists

. In the mid-1990s, he was also a columnist in this newspaper. Some of those columns are reproduced in this book.

Overall, the result has been not just an intense engagement with economic issues and ideas but also with economists. For someone as intellectually active as Khatkhate, it was natural that this would result in a large number of articles in newspapers and periodicals. This is a collection of some of those.

The book, which is beautifully produced, is divided into five sections. One comprises articles on America, another on India and so on. The section I found most engrossing was the one that contains tributes to economists who served India well. Only a dozen of them are covered here but then that is in the nature of things. It would be impossible for one person to write about everyone.

Fittingly, the section is entitled 'Lest we forget' and contains essays on Manu Shroff, B S Minhas, I G Patel, Krishna Raj, Asok Mitra, V K Ramaswami, S Jagannathan, C D Deshmukh, D T Lakdawala, B K Madan, B P Adarkar, and Sachin Chaudhuri. The book is a must read for these essays alone. Indeed, something similar should be attempted for the others as well for there are many unsung heroes who deserve at least that little footnote in our history.

B S Minhas, for instance, says Khatkhate was responsible for ensuring that India bought the right commercial airliners in the 1960s. He was an economic advisor in the government and was asked by the secretary for aviation to pick the right plane. He chose Boeing although he was facing considerable pressure from the usual political and business lobbies to opt for something else.

Nor is it very well known that the reason why S Jagannathan was, through hints, removed from his post as RBI governor in 1976 was because he had refused to issue directions raising the credit limit for Sanjay Gandhi's Maruti. Khatkhate also writes about how C D Deshmukh was completely besotted by Durgabai and swept off his feet and lost his sense of proportion somewhat.

Of D T Lakdawala, he writes: "Though of serious mien he had a subtle and impish sense of humour, which he exuded through brevity of language and with a trademark wink. A student, intelligent and serious, was troubled by his one-sided love affair and sought Lakdawala's advice. When asked for an interview, Lakdawala knew well what was coming. 'Sir, I can't study because I love her.' Quietly but sympathetically, Lakdawala mollified him, 'Then love her.' The student, overwhelmed, reacted, 'But sir, she does not love me.' Softly came the professor's consoling advice, 'Then don't love her.' This ding-dong conversation went on for one full hour, guru and disciple chasing each other's tail."

And of B K Madan: "Madan's serious mien was somewhat misleading. He used to regularly write so-called ESP (extra-sensory perception) letters to finance minister Deshmukh, full of wit and humour, a little innuendo, and a good bit of well-meaning gossip about money men and their wheeling and dealing, and an inside view of the deliberations on important international monetary issues. In one of the letters he narrated a delightful story. At that time an Indian, a former non-gazetted employee of the Government of India, was an Executive Director of the World Bank. His British counterpart had been his boss in Delhi in the pre-independence days. When he saw the Indian Executive Director for the first time, he whispered to him, 'Eh, have you gone up or have I gone down?' Prompt came the reply from the Indian, 'Both.'"

RUMINATIONS OF A GADFLY
PERSONS, PLACES, PERCEPTIONS

Deena Khatkhate
Academic Foundation
Rs 795; Pp 410