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Correspondent

23 August 2024 at 4:29:04 pm

Festive Surge

India’s bazaars have glittered this Diwali with the unmistakable glow of consumer confidence. The country’s festive sales crossed a staggering Rs. 6 lakh crore with goods alone accounting for Rs. 5.4 lakh crore and services contributing Rs. 65,000 crore. More remarkable still, the bulk of this spending flowed through India’s traditional markets rather than e-commerce platforms. After years of economic caution and digital dominance, Indians are once again shopping in person and buying local....

Festive Surge

India’s bazaars have glittered this Diwali with the unmistakable glow of consumer confidence. The country’s festive sales crossed a staggering Rs. 6 lakh crore with goods alone accounting for Rs. 5.4 lakh crore and services contributing Rs. 65,000 crore. More remarkable still, the bulk of this spending flowed through India’s traditional markets rather than e-commerce platforms. After years of economic caution and digital dominance, Indians are once again shopping in person and buying local. This reversal owes much to policy. The recent rationalisation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) which trimmed rates across categories from garments to home furnishings, has given consumption a timely push. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s September rate cuts, combined with income tax relief and easing interest rates, have strengthened household budgets just as inflation softened. The middle class, long squeezed between rising costs and stagnant wages, has found reason to spend again. Retailers report that shoppers filled their bags with everything from lab-grown diamonds and casual wear to consumer durables and décor, blurring the line between necessity and indulgence. The effect has been broad-based. According to Crisil Ratings, 40 organised apparel retailers, who together generate roughly a third of the sector’s revenue, could see growth of 13–14 percent this financial year, aided by a 200-basis-point bump from GST cuts alone. Small traders too have flourished. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) estimates that 85 percent of total festive trade came from non-corporate and traditional markets, a robust comeback for brick-and-mortar retail that had been under siege from online rivals. This surge signals a subtle but significant cultural shift. The “Vocal for Local” and “Swadeshi Diwali” campaigns struck a patriotic chord, with consumers reportedly preferring Indian-made products to imported ones. Demand for Chinese goods fell sharply, while sales of Indian-manufactured products rose by a quarter over last year. For the first time in years, “buying Indian” has become both an act of economic participation and of national pride. The sectoral spread of this boom underlines its breadth. Groceries and fast-moving consumer goods accounted for 12 percent of the total, gold and jewellery 10 percent, and electronics 8 percent. Even traditionally modest categories like home furnishings, décor and confectionery recorded double-digit growth. In the smaller towns that anchor India’s consumption story, traders say stable prices and improved affordability kept registers ringing late into the festive weekend. Yet, much of this buoyancy rests on a fragile equilibrium. Inflation remains contained, and interest rates have been eased, but both could tighten again. Sustaining this spurt will require continued fiscal prudence and regulatory clarity, especially as digital commerce continues to expand its reach. Yet for now, the signs are auspicious. After years of subdued demand and inflationary unease, India’s shoppers appear to have rediscovered their appetite for consumption and their faith in domestic enterprise. The result is not only a record-breaking Diwali, but a reaffirmation of the local marketplace as the heartbeat of India’s economy.

Home Grounded

Updated: Nov 7, 2024

In a historic drubbing, New Zealand clinched a 3-0 Test series victory against India on Indian soil—a defeat the host nation has not witnessed in 91 years. The shameful loss has stirred introspection not only about India’s cricketing fundamentals but also about the priorities in Indian cricket. In a twist that would be laughable if it were not so disastrous, Indian batsmen now find themselves as vulnerable to spin on home soil as their foreign counterparts.


The irony is rich: India’s own players are strangers to the turning tracks that once gave them an edge, all because the domestic fixtures that once defined Indian cricket—Ranji, Duleep, and Irani trophies—are no longer seen as essential. With few players mandated to participate in these tournaments, India’s preparation has withered, while visitors like Australia and New Zealand arrive more practiced and ready for challenge.


Once upon a time, the cricket calendar allowed a rhythm that cultivated excellence. One season, Indian cricketers would tour the West Indies, England, or Australia; the next, they would defend their turf against incoming sides. Without the glitzy interruptions of today’s Indian Premier League (IPL), attention remained firmly on domestic cricket. The Ranji Trophy was a battleground for regional pride and an incubator of national talent. Players like Sunil Gavaskar, who took immense pride in representing Bombay, or Gundappa Vishwanath for Karnataka, sharpened their skills and developed a deep, enduring commitment to the game’s demands. These tournaments provided Indian players with rigorous practice against top-class spinners, who often happened to be their own compatriots like the great spin quartet of Bedi, B. Chandrashekhar, E. Prassana, and S. Venkataraghavan, offering a unique experience and preparation in tackling the visiting foreign team that is absent today.


Today, however, this foundation has been eroded. The lucrative IPL, now an immovable fixture, has diminished the importance of long-format domestic cricket, sidelining it as a secondary pursuit. What was once a pathway to technical mastery and grit has now become optional, and India’s Test team is paying the price.


In the age of glitzy T20 leagues, traditional domestic tournaments have been sidelined. Indian batsmen who once took pride in technical mastery are now drawn into the faster, commercial allure of the IPL. With the IPL monopolizing the cricket calendar, the emphasis now is on quick runs and big hits. In Tests, occupying the crease for long periods is essential, but in today’s game, Indian players lack this mindset. Most telling symptom is the silence of cricket’s opinion-makers. Unlike past eras when poor Test performances invited heavy criticism, today’s media coverage rarely dissects the underlying issues. India’s cricket fandom, too, has changed drastically. Fans once had high expectations from their players, with Test failures greeted by massive public outcry. Today, instead of censuring Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli, they continue to be regarded as sporting demi-gods who keep getting lucrative advertisement offers.

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