A good beginning’, September 2, is clutching at straws. To be sure, the government has come up with a slew of plans, but to say that it has got off to a more ambitious start than any other government since Rajiv Gandhi’s in 1985 is to miss the impact of the government’s actions. The Draft Tax Code has been roundly criticised by most experts, including in the Business Standard. The NREGA, it has been seen, has led to a sharp rise in agricultural wages and may end up destroying more jobs than it creates.
The education minister is perhaps one of the few whose proposals have been noteworthy but, in this case too, it may be wise to wait a little. Abolishing the Class X examinations has got him very good media attention, but the real proof lies in his ability to rejuvenate the country’s education system — and he has demonstrated no ability to carry the state governments with him so far.
Reining in the telecom minister, as you have pointed out, has been a smart move, but the overriding image of the first 100 days is that of a government which has been burnt badly with the stench of the Ambani gas flame.
N Kumar, on email
