The minutes of the last Monetary Policy Committee meeting, released on Thursday, has given the impression that the central bank would not cut interest rates in the near term. This has resulted in higher bond yields and could make government borrowing more difficult. Also, economic recovery will now depend more on government action.
The World Bank says public debt is headed to become nearly 50 per cent greater than the desirable level, two years from now.
To keep that in check, or risk a credit downgrade, fiscal policy will have to contract. At some point, the disconnect between this outlook and expansive spending pronouncements will have to be addressed, writes T N Ninan
A really popular, well-entrenched Indian leader has never been defeated by a rival. Which is why Modi is impregnable and only he can defeat himself, writes Shekhar Gupta
Whatever its apprehensions and concerns about the regime of the Rajapaksa clan, India must put transactionalism aside and be ready with unconditional assistance when Colombo asks for it, writes Aditi Phadnis