This refers to the editorial "Show the maths" (March 27). The Congress' manifesto promises a right to health, housing, pensions and social security, humane working conditions and a right to entrepreneurship. But what prevented the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) from fulfilling these promises in its decade of existence? Manifestos trundle out unconditional promises. Once the party or a coalition comes to power, either the promises are forgotten or they are implemented with conditions that are hard to digest. No party can promise a government without scams since they can not sacrifice tainted people in the electoral fray. If the candidates fielded in the election are treated as inputs, then tainted candidates are bad inputs. Good outputs cannot be expected if the inputs are bad. The basic needs of a common man are water, electricity, food grains at affordable prices, transportation and, of course, health care, which finds a place in the manifesto. It says the Congress intends to spend Rs 60 lakh-crore on infrastructure, but where does the party intend to get the money from?
K V Seetharamaiah Hassan
Letters can be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to:
The Editor, Business Standard
Nehru House, 4 Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg
New Delhi 110 002
Fax: (011) 23720201
E-mail: letters@bsmail.in
All letters must have a postal address and telephone number
