The economy is in the frying pan and PM Modi left it too late to act

The Modi govt placed a one-way bet on low oil prices and lost its grip on the economy as they rose

Just four months ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave a long speech in the Lok Sabha. One of the things he said was that when he assumed office the economy was in a very poor shape. India, he said, had been placed in a grouping called the Fragile Five by international agencies. But our government has rescued India and our economy is no longer fragile. 

The treasury benches clapped.

Yet, just 16 weeks later, things are looking less rosy, if not actually grim. Forget the perennial structural problems like employment, agriculture, exports etc, even the day-to-day stuff like uncertain inflation,