The PM's list

Any government committee's list of 100 people whom it picks to honour, out of a potential qualifying set of many thousand, will meet with both appreciation and criticism from independent observers. For years, if not decades, no businessman found his way into the list; thankfully, that is no longer the case as businessmen are now viewed by government not as criminals but as people who play a useful role. In all years, the government has chosen to be most gracious to people who have spent their life in the government system""which might be seen as some kind of Darwinian principle in operation. The list also provokes, as is inevitable in such matters, a considerable degree of lobbying by some, and is used by the government to reward friends and supporters. All of this has robbed the annual list of some of the sheen that it might otherwise have been credited with. But it is something to be grateful for that there is as yet no instance of the cash-for-awards scandals that have erupted periodically in Britain.

What distinguishes this year's list is the indelible stamp of the Prime Minister himself""many economists and academics have made it to the list, signalling that devotion to academic excellence is finally being rewarded. At the top of the list, among those who have been given the highest Padma award (the Padma Vibhushan) is Raja Chelliah, who is recognised by most informed observers as the principal architect of India's tax reforms, beginning with his work for the Jha committee on indirect taxes in 1978, following it with his taxation reform reports in the early 1990s, and culminating in his serving as an advisor to the finance minister for Budget formulation. It is testimony to Dr Chelliah's foresight and detailed work that finance ministers from the mid-1980s have relied on his work to set the broad direction of tax reform. It also speaks of Dr Chelliah's commitment to the country that, at a time when many other leading economists chose to wander off to other shores or greener pastures, he chose to come back from the International Monetary Fund in 1976 and set up the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy. The country should rightly be grateful to Dr Chelliah for giving it a sensible tax system, far removed from the abominations of the 1960s and 1970s.

Other economists honoured this year include the redoubtable TN Srinivasan of Yale, and (more questionably) Jeffrey Sachs""who has had little to do with India and whose record as an advisor on reforms in some of the transition economies (most notably Russia) is controversial. Jagdish Bhagwati, whose work on trade is seminal, is a surprising omission""but that is the problem with all such lists. He might take comfort in the thought that his jurist brother has been honoured.

Business people too have been honoured in fair number. The presence of the PepsiCo chief is recognition of her achievement in breaking through two glass barriers at the same time, and is also a bow to non-resident Indians. Choosing Suzuki chief Osamu Suzuki is appropriate, given how Maruti has changed the face of the country's car industry""and signals a new level of welcome for foreign businessmen who make a commitment to India. And Sunil Bharti Mittal's inclusion in the list of Padma Bhushan list is self-explanatory, since he is among the most successful of the new generation of businessmen and has played no small role in extending the reach of telecommunications.