Upside of a crisis

Time may be ripe for structural changes that prioritise the poor

A global catastrophe as is unfolding will produce structural changes in nations and especially democracies. When the entire population is affected by an event, as is the case today, it will want to assert itself. This is especially so if the effect of the catastrophe is concentrated and not fragmented, as again is the case today. Those who have been excluded and starved of resources for which they are suffering have the opportunity to mobilise and demand more.

Of few democracies, or perhaps of no democracy, is it as true as it is of India that the many are starved of