Vivek Sharma

Rs35 lakh toilets and a cabinet minister

08 Jun 2012

The Rs35-lakh toilets at the Planning Commission have gained celebrity status and continue to attract envious badgering, but no politician, pundit, or paparazzi seem to envy the second cabinet minister for tourism promotion.By Vivek Sharma

Talking ourselves into a depression

27 May 2012

Reading a newspaper or watching television these days will make us believe that the Indian economy is already in a depression and our collective economic future is irredeemably doomed, if we are not dead already. The truth, as always, is more nuanced. By Vivek Sharma

A saint’s diary

03 May 2012

Excerpts from the personal diary of defence minister A K Antony, the only remaining Saint in the union cabinet, though his halo is no longer visible to the naked eye. Detailing his trials and tribulations over the last one year when he had to fight so hard to protect his Mr Clean status and the chances of becoming the next Rashtrapati. By Vivek Sharma

Letter to the finance minister, from a salaried taxpayer

22 Feb 2010

Though they are the most loyal of tax payers, the government still discriminates against the salaried class. They are not allowed to cut their taxes, when other tax payers are allowed to do so freely. It is time to level the playing field .  By Vivek Sharma

Chapters yet to be written on the Bernanke legend

08 Sep 2009

Ben Bernanke’s efforts since September 2008 have been exemplary and the reappointment is just reward for the ‘man who saved the world’, says Vivek Sharma

Save yourself the trouble, take back your Rs1,000

07 Jul 2009

If he is living in the '70s when Rs1,000 would have bought a second hand moped, this finance minister is downright dangerous and the Sensex should have crashed even more. By Vivek Sharma

Forget the fiscal deficit, pamper us!

27 Jun 2009

As the finance minister finalises his budget proposals, an open letter to calm his worries about the fiscal deficit and some suggestions to establish himself as the biggest reformer of all. By Vivek Sharma

Most shoots are not yet fully green

20 Jun 2009

Going by the big surge in optimism, it may seem the Indian economy has left all its woes behind. But, tempering the heady feeling with a bit of caution will do us no harm. By Vivek Sharma

A global depression? Not yet

21 Oct 2008

The global economy is definitely headed for its worst downturn in decades and this phase may last a while. But, based on the evidence so far, the global economy may not be headed for a depression. By Vivek Sharma

Has the US economy staved off a recession?

05 Sep 2008

Despite the thick clouds of pessimism surrounding it, the US economy continues to do surprisingly well in terms of aggregate growth. What is driving the world’s largest economy and can this growth sustain? By Vivek Sharma