Taking India Forward in 2013
Economic Times, December 31, 2012

By Pradeep S Mehta

This month (December 2012) we saw some sanity revert in our law making process when law makers passed laws and pushed the reforms agenda. Thanks to the adroit handling of cantankerous issues and dissonance by the new Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath. Whether, we agree with everything that the government has done well or not, we look forward to a resolute and smart government to take the growth agenda forward in 2013 as well…considering the nature of our fractious polity, the Central Government will need to become a true union government. More...

Why regulation of organised retail is important
Financial Express, December 18, 2012

By Pradeep S Mehta

The winter session of Parliament witnessed another chaotic period on several issues, including foreign direct investment in the multi-brand retail sector. What is surprising is that the main opposition party, when in power in 2002, wanted to allow FDI in retail and the incumbent ruling party labelled it as anti-national. Now the tables have been turned around, quite funnily. Perhaps, the game plan appears to be bigger than the retail policy. On the other hand, domestic large organised retailing has already entered into our economic space, and no one seems to be worried about how they are running their business. The large retail sector has its own peculiarities and needs to be regulated in a sui generis fashion, as many countries have also done. Better late, than never. More...

India's uneven playing fields
Business Standard, December 14, 2012

By Pradeep S Mehta

Competitive neutrality is a minimum condition for effective mixed markets, for which the government needs to adopt and implement the National Competition Policy quickly. Despite being an essential ingredient for a successful competition regime, India is seeing several instances of distortion of this principle across its various sectors. In the recent past, there have been many such cases. The application of competitive neutrality and any deviation from these principles, therefore, should always be subject to the condition that the benefits outweigh the associated costs. For this to happen soon, the government needs to adopt the National Competition Policy and implement it. More...