This refers to the Chinese Whisper item on Kaushik Basu getting his “freedom of expression” back once he returns to Cornell after his tenure at the finance ministry (“Talkie after talk,” May 1). It seems to me that economists in India already enjoy enough freedom of expression. We hear almost every economist make predictions about the GDP growth rate and inflation and the time period within which it would ease. We often hear them say there’s a need to cut deficit and that a high subsidy bill is the biggest challenge and so on. Indeed, our economists also have complete freedom of expression when it comes to estimating the number of poor in our country — some say 77 per cent are poor, others say 55 per cent and yet others make estimations ranging from 41 per cent to 27 per cent. They also seem to be fond of writing joint letters to the prime minister, expressing their views on various issues. Hence, I feel that Indian economists in general enjoy a great deal of freedom but lack accountability and are never held responsible for the predictions and assertions they make. They also seem out of touch with reality and know very little of what goes on outside their office premises.
S C Aggarwal New Delhi
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