Late last year, when one of the world’s best known economists, Jeffrey D Sachs spoke in Singapore about how be it outsourcing or manufacturing India gradually catching up with China on growth rate, the local nonresident Indian community there was filled with a sense of pride. However, in New Delhi last week, while attending Teri’s Sustainable Development Summit, Dr Sachs, director of The Earth Research Institute at Columbia University and special adviser to the UN secretary general, sounded less optimistic.
“On the Millenium Development Goals, the Indian government needs to do more in terms of health coverage, water resources, maternal mortality and AIDS. And while China is about a decade ahead in rapid economic growth, the public sector there is also ahead in terms of social responsibility,’ said Sachs who’s director, UN Millenium Project. ‘Of course in some areas like regional imbalances and a rural economy that is lagging behind, China and India are in the same boat,’ Sachs added. Named one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2004 by Time magazine, Sachs didn’t want to specifically name any of the younger Indian American economists who are in the reckoning globally. Instead, he felt that Rajat Gupta, senior partner and former MD McKinsey, is one of the most influential Indians in a global leadership role. ‘I have been meeting with him a lot lately to discuss the Millenium Development goals, how to channel more funds into sustainable development and tackling the AIDS crisis,’ said Sachs. He also felt that the non-resident Indian community in the US had not just arrived in terms of w e a l t h creation and entrepreneurship. ‘It is significant that they are engaging a lot more with India and building links between India and the rest of the world. That is very important,’ he said. Of course, among the big names in economics from India, his close friend Manmohan Singh, figures on the top of his list.
