C. Rangarajan is among India's foremost economists, who has had a profound, lasting and decisive impact in charting the economic direction of the country over the last quarter century. This volume is a collection of essays written by the author at different points in time during the last few years. Each essay stands by itself and offers the readers deep insights into a particular problem. The essays reflect the scholarship and long experience in policy-making of the author. The volume covers a wide spectrum of topics ranging from monetary policy and financial stability to globalisation and economic growth and social development. The essay on 'Financial Stability' though written much before the current crisis, had anticipated many of the issues that are being debated today. The essay on 'Monetary Policy' argues that maintaining price stability should be the dominant objective of monetary policy. The essay on 'Globalisation' points out that India should seek to wrest maximum advantages from globalisation by identifying the comparative advantages that India possesses.
In the essay 'Economic Growth and Social Development', the author pleads for an approach that weaves equity and efficiency into a coherent pattern of growth. Economic growth and social development are the two legs on which a nation should walk. Ignoring any one leg will only mean that the nation will limp along. The book is divided into four sections: Monetary Policy and Fiscal Issues; Growth and Development; Sectoral Issues - Industry, Power, Banking and Agriculture; and, External Sector and Globalisation. The book contains in all 25 essays and should interest a wide cross section of audience.