The distress sale of national assets is unwise Updated: Updated: March 04, 2021 12:45 IST The government’s intent to offload public sector units and banks will only result in the long-term loss of public wealth Share Article AAA The government’s intent to offload public sector units and banks will only result in the long-term loss of public wealth The origin of the ongoing crisis in the Indian economy was the fateful night of November 8, 2016. Dr. Manmohan Singh’s prescient words in Parliament — that demonetisation would lead to a 2% drop in the GDP — were not heeded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On the contrary, a badly designed and hastily implemented flawed Goods and Services Tax (GST) followed, further devastating vast numbers of medium and small enterprises, as well as the vast informal sector of the economy. Together, these twin disasters robbed millions of their livelihoods and plunged the Indian economy into a prolonged slump that predates the COVID-19 pandemic.