Lessons from 1948 to 2018

In 70 years India has actually had only half a dozen growth budgets. The rest have been about redistribution of incomes

All finance ministers, everywhere, have very difficult jobs which comprise mutually inconsistent and conflicting objectives. Thus they have to raise money and also be able to say ‘no’ to ministerial colleagues asking for money. This is because good finance ministers also have to ensure that public finances remain healthy.

However, politics often determines the pattern of government expenditure. That is why the experience of the last seventy years shows that just when a finance minister thinks he's got it all under control, the Sisyphian rock rolls right down again. Politics, external shocks, disasters, droughts etc all contribute.

This is what