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| | Post New Topic | | (Recession) Have light, will travel | Views: 40 | | Oct 16, 2009 9:54 pm | | (Recession) Have light, will travel | # | 
Parag Pattani | | The following appears in The Times of India from an Indian and global perspective.
Parag
Since times immemorial, light has been associated with inner illumination and joy. Think of why we imagine the "Eureka!" moment as a lightbulb coming on. Equally, in beliefs across cultures and continents, light evokes a point of arrival for those traversing the dark as a trial, a rite of passage. Thus Rama returns from exile, his path illuminated by lamps deepawali hailing the homecoming. Light, then, not only shows the way, it is itself a destination.
In gloom, we often speak of light at the end of the tunnel. No phrase today is more aptly describes a world seemingly emerging from the worst recession since the Great Depression. Only yesterday, we braced for a frightening replay of the 1930s' busts and bread queues. How could we not, with the experts telling us that we had no idea how bad it was? One celebrity economist even famously warned that we were standing at the edge of the abyss.
A year since, we're seemingly back from the brink. Green shoots are appearing, some of the greenest in India. It's not just the festive season watch those gold coin and auto sales! that's spreading feelgood. If factory shutdowns, layoffs and credit scarcity dampened spirits yesterday, today India Inc seems upbeat. Firms, once handing out pink slips, are hiring again. Investors, who fled or postponed entry, are once again betting on our growth story. India, analysts conjecture, could achieve 8-plus per cent growth sooner than forecast. Should a second wave of reforms be boldly initiated, we could transform our flightpath. In recovery mode as well, neighbouring China is elbowing past rivals as global trade's top gun. Both Asian giants seem set to emerge stronger than before from the slowdown.
Elsewhere, hope floats. Europe's manufacturing and services are pepping up. Global bourses are lively and, fears of asset bubbles notwithstanding, market confidence after a skittish year is a mood upper. If fuel inventories were piling up, oil prices are now heading north. That hits pockets, but look on the bright side: it's also a sign people want to be on the move again. Above all, the US may see positive third quarter growth after ages in the red. Jobs will languish for a while yet, but the recession's most likely over. So the Fed says, so it's straight from the horse's mouth.
Many insist we're still in the tunnel, that the exit's a long way off. Others say the darkness is lifting in defiance of doomsaying. Look at it in terms of the distance travelled from Diwali 2008 to Diwali 2009, and it's perhaps remarkable we see a light ahead so soon at all. To reach it, we must keep moving towards it. Today, why not simply celebrate the journey back home?
Private Reply to Parag Pattani | | Oct 17, 2009 2:49 am | | re: (Recession) Have light, will travel | # | 
Saunthara Subramaniam Velu | | True Paragji. May you venture far on a wave of light from the rays of blessing this Diwali showers upon you :)
Warm Regards
Subra
Private Reply to Saunthara Subramaniam Velu |  | |
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