Abhijit Banerjee is one of the three winners of the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics. On winning, along with Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer, Mr. Banerjee shared his views on the economic slowdown, taxes, financial downfall and inflation in India. He stressed that the Indian Economy is in a tailspin and government needs to take steps soon.
On Winning the Nobel Prize
Abhijit Banerjee won Nobel Laureate for “experimental approach to alleviating global poverty”. Banerjee believes the success is that hundreds of researchers are a part of this approach. He mentioned that the prize does not belong to just the three of them, but the entire enterprise.
Banerjee’s thoughts on Economic Slowdown
Banerjee has expressed his concern over the Indian economy. He elaborated on the warning signs by providing data specified by the National Sample Survey (NSS). Particularly, describing the average consumption in urban and rural areas of India. Subsequently, this data portrayed a significant decrease in numbers from 2014-15 to 2017-18.
Abhijit Banerjee revealed the raised conflict about data in India. Despite the uncertainty about statistics, he confirmed that economic downfall is real. He believes that the Government is recognizing the problems. Even so, Banerjee advises the center that pleasing people and pretending to hold budgetary targets is least of their concern right now.
Decreased Demand has a Major role in the Fiscal Shortfall
The slowdown in demand hit the economy badly. Whereas, the decrease in demand might be a combination of several factors. They include stress in agriculture, shocks from GST, the reduced purchasing power of low-income groups, etc., Above all, he suggests that demand stimulation would help us rectify glimpses of the economic turmoil.
Triumph over the Bad Phase of the Economy: Banerjee’s advice
He advised that India must stop worrying about monetary stability, while start focusing on-demand stimulation. Additionally, he suggested the government to give more power and money to the poor. This could be achieved through the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), higher support prices for crops, etc. Finally, he recommended higher taxes on businessmen to fund welfare schemes.