Economic Summit

The Centenary celebrations of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has almost attained the status of a world economic forum, going by the high-level delegations that attented the three day conference discussing India's liberalisation. The statement of the CII secretary general that we hope to be compared with the World Economic Forum (the annual meeting of world statemen and leaders of industry) at Davos may not be an idle wish of CII can repeat the convening of this forum every year to discuss economic matters. The immediate thought that comes to mind is that India should prove its economic significance to the world by its actions. In the present context, follow-up action in the wake of liberalisation alone would entitle India to that status. While most of the foreign delegations including the British Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd, thought that reforms have come to stay, there may have been an unexpressed feeling in their minds that reforms have been moving at a snail's place, especially in the last six months. The fact is that it is so.

The elections in the southern states and run-up to the elections three months earlier had induced a let-up in reforms. And after the Congress fiasco in Andhra and Karnataka, the Prime Minister has hardly had time to concentrate on the reforms, what with his attempts at warding off the various missiles aimed at him from the Arjun Singh camp.