In AIPEF letter 37 of 03 May 2021 the question has been raised as to why the proposal to overhaul the NEP has been raised when the entire nation is in grip of an unprecedented crisis of the pandemic. We had given quotations  from articles by Swaminathan Aiyar  (Never waste a crisis) and the Chief Economic Adviser  K Subramanian  (India is the only large Economy that has carried out a slew of economic  reforms  by using the crisis) .

2. To  elaborate further we refer to an  article in The Economic Times of  25 April 2021  which gives the view of  Swaminathan Aiyar  “  Out of covid-19 disaster comes privatization , and other reforms”.    Some parts of the newspaper report are quoted ( copy attached).

After Prime Minister Modi’s announcement of Rs 20 trillion revival package and Finance Minister Nirmala Sirtharaman’s elucidation of the measures in five instalments , the response was dismal….

Alas, the package is a sedative to ease the pain, not a stimulus that will revive  a crashing economy. Sedatives have their uses , but must not be mistaken for stimuli, let alone cures.  Yet, the package might just go down in History as a turning point in economic reform.

 ‘Never waste a crisis’ is an old saying and Modi is not wasting this one. But he and Sitharaman have not spelt out details of many proposed reforms in land, labour and the legal system. But their dramatic embrace of privatization is unambiguous and stunning. 

3. From the above  quoted  articles , it is seen that the  move to amend the NEP has its origin and links  with the Covid-19 disaster  and is a direct result of GOI  policy never wasting a crisis.  Second, that  the Covid 19 disaster has resulted  in a policy swing  described by the term  But their dramatic embrace of privatization is unambiguous and stunning.  The approach and thinking  of GOI  is thus heavily biased and prejudiced towards  privatization  that we cannot expect any fair or  unbiased  response  in dealing with the NEP amendments . So long as the pandemic persists and prevails  GOI will continue to exploit the crisis  with the argument that a crisis must not be wasted.

4.  In view of the above facts and circumstances we repeat that  the engineers and workers have to devote themselves fully  towards  ensuring uninterrupted power supply  and this is not the time to introduce  privatization  through the back door. 

Thank you with regards.

Sincerely Yours

Shailendra Dubey