Economic Survey 2021: CEA borrows from Upanishads to Martin Luther King to put Indian economy into perspective

Updated : January 29, 2021 09:39:46 IST

Subramanian quoted Aristotle to highlight the impact of poverty and took help from Tagore's mastery over words to instill bravery.

Continuing with a tradition of sorts the Chief Economic Advisor, KV Subramanian, enlisted the help of some of the wisest of humanity to introduce and emphasise the findings and observations of Economic Survey 2021.

The CEA quoted the Upanishads when talking about development, went to the father of political science, Aristotle, to highlight the impact of poverty, took help from Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore's mastery over words to instil bravery and sought help from two of the biggest social justice warriors of the modern age - Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr - to speak about the challenges for modern healthcare.

Subramanian started the Survey with words that empower the reader to learn and unlearn:

O Lord, Keep me not in Unreality, but make me go towards the Reality,

Keep me not in Darkness, but make me go towards the Light.

Another one from Mahabharata opened the first chapter of the first volume of Economic Survey. The chapter, titled Saving Lives and Livelihoods Amidst a Once-in-a-Century Crisis justified the government's decision of an early lockdown, began with:

"Saving a life that is in jeopardy is the origin of dharma" (Chapter 13, Shloka 598)

Mahakavi Kalidasa's Raghuvansham opened the second chapter that discussed the difference between the economy's interest and growth rate. The quote read:

"The state collects tax for the greater welfare of its citizens in the same way as the sun evaporates water, only to return it manifold in the form of rain.” (Chapter 1, Shloka 18)

India's sovereign credit rating is the lowest rung of the investment-grade (BBB). But does it reflect India's fundamentals? CEA says no. He said a low rating had no major impact on indicators such as Sensex returns, forex rate, or yield of g-secs. Thus, he said, India's fiscal policy must reflect Rabindranath Tagore's sentiment of a mind without fear:

“Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high … into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake”.

By examining the correlation of inequality and per-capita income with a range of socioeconomic indicators, the Survey highlights that economic growth and inequality have similar relationships with socio-economic indicators. Aristotle's quote seconds it:

"Poverty is the parent of revolution and crime."

Healthcare takes centre stage, finally is the title of the fifth chapter that highlights that government's attention has moved towards what's 'real wealth' in words of Mohandas K. Gandhi:

"It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.”

Subramanian also quotes Santayana in the chapter Regulatory Forbearance — a chapter that studies the impact of the 2008 forbearance policy on the economy to glean important lessons for the current times, as

“Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat it.”

The report cited Thirukural to encourage innovation in the private sector. It read:

“If a rare opportunity occurs, while it lasts, let a man do that which is rarely to be accomplished (but for such an opportunity)”. ―Chapter 49, verse 489.

Martin Luther King Jr had said:

"Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in healthcare is the most shocking and most inhuman."

Subramanian quoted him to beautifully portray what 28 graphs in the report were to say: Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) had a positive effect on healthcare outcomes.

The report pulled bare necessities from The Jungle Book to examine India's progress in providing the 'bare necessities' to its citizens.

"Look for the bare necessities, The simple bare necessities, Forget about your worries and your strife, I mean the bare necessities!"

The Survey dips into the wisdom of Thirukkural to examine the state of the economy in 2020-21 when India and the entire global economy had to face the most formidable challenge: lives versus livelihoods.

“Doing the right things at the right time is the rope, which binds the wealth, making it boundless.” —Chapter 49, Verse 482.

India enforced an intense lockdown at the onset of the pandemic, characterizing a unique response in several ways driven by epidemiological and economic research findings. India’s humane policy response focused on saving human lives, recognising that the short-term pain of an initial, stringent lockdown would lead to long-term gains both in the lives saved and in the pace of the economic recovery. While the lockdown did put a brake on an economy gaining momentum, but with the mega-vaccination drive, normalcy is not too far.

Right after beating Jose Aldo, Conor McGregor, Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight and lightweight champion had said:

"Precision Beats Power, and Timing Beats Speed"

Subramanian chose his words to second India's calibrated approach to facilitate a resilient recovery of the economy from the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.

From McGregor, the Survey moved to Sanskrit's epigrammatic poem, Subhashita to seek the aphorism one can find with a decline in global trade, lower commodity prices, and tighter external financing conditions:

"The air that blows off a small lamp becomes the friend of a jungle fire! Power garners support!"

Further, the Survey touched India's roots and quoted Brihadaaranyaka Upanishad (1.4.14). Nothing else could highlight India's sustainable development and climate change objectives better then:

"May all be happy; May all be without disease; May all have well-being; May none have misery of any sort"

The Survey then borrowed the words of Thiruvalluvar, an esteemed Tamil poet and philosopher, to remind everyone what agriculture and its resilience despite the pandemic, mean to India regardless of protests and laws that continue to darken its legacy. The quote read:

"Who have the shade of cornful crest, under their umbra umbrella rest."

Finally, the CEA summarized FY21 with an adroit and crafty point:

“Start by doing what’s necessary, then do what’s possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible” because as Albert Einstein said, “In the midst of every crisis, lies great opportunity.”

Published : January 29, 2021 07:35 PM IST

Economic Survey 2021: CEA borrows from Upanishads to Martin Luther King to put Indian economy into perspective

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