Banned?
Libertarians HATE the word “ban.”
All that should be "banned" are murder, rape, theft, cheating and not much else – and we ALL agree that these acts should be prohibited.
But cigarette manufacturing?
Are we supposed to smoke swadeshi cigarettes forever?
Didn’t our drinking improve with FDI in alcohol? Anyone recall the bad old days of Old Monk(ey)? Or Campa Cola?
In Orwell’s 1984, the cigarettes are terrible. Just as Indian cigarettes are terrible today. Shouldn’t foreigners be allowed to compete? Shouldn’t the consumer get a better deal? Shouldn’t millions who smoke bidis move up to cigarettes?
Should the tribals of central India be stuck with tendu leaves as their only source of income? Or should they be smoking 555 State Express in their mahua plantations? And surely State Express would be the preferred brand of these tribals, who are currently "Smoking The State" - as this report in the Express indicates.
And what about tobacco farmers? Should ITC be their only customer?
All this apart, banning FDI in a capital-poor country is rock-bottom stupidity. As with FDI in retailing, so with cigarettes, we only entrench domestic poverty by keeping foreign capital out. Employing more Capital per unit of Labour is the only way to raise wages permanently.
This clearly shows that any “FDI policy” is harmful. It makes everything arbitrary – and necessarily corrupt. Foreigners should be able to freely invest in India, and Indians should be able to freely trade with them. What this means is a “private law society.” Ministers should be forced to get out of the way of FDI.
Rukawat Hatao! Remove the Obstacle!
Free Trade.
Free movement of Capital.
Free movement of Labour.
The classicals called it:
Laissez faire et laissez passer!
it is obvious that ITC must have greased the palms of many .. but i am not the one to complain since I am their employee
ReplyDelete@Ramesh: You should complain because you are a citizen and a consumer. My old friend in ITC prefers to smoke Cohibas!
ReplyDelete