Yet in many parts of India a sense of drift, chaos, even baseness is growing pervasive. Indians have seldom gotten the government they deserve. Past administrations have proved incompetent, corrupt and oppressive. There is a shortage of water, power is frequently cut, and prices of most goods are out of control. Add to all that city air so contaminated that an estimated 10,000 people die every year from respiratory diseases directly linked to pollution.
Positive news is scant.
Also, on the financial front, the BJP has streamlined subsidies that were a major drain on state revenues, and has taken steps to open the lucrative insurance sector to foreign investment against great opposition from trade unions. There's no political will to solve the problems. A key reason is that though Vajpayee's administration was to turn a year old on March 19, it is in fact living from day to day. Except for one coalition in the 1970s, no non-Congress government has ever survived more than 12 months in power. Because the cabinet consists of officials from many parties, consensus on policies is hard to achieve.