Inflation precedes prosperity

Inflation is supposed to be a big killer. Governments and economists are scared of it, though not, I think, businessmen. But is it really as deadly as it is supposed to be? Before the last world war, we had no inflation worth the name. In fact, the world, including India, was passing through one of the worst depressions in memory. I was a student in the 1930s and lived, or managed to live, on 20-30 rupees a month away from the family. Food, like everything else, was plentiful and cheap. A thali in a city like Bombay cost 20 paise (three annas) and often less. For an anna (one-sixteenth of the rupee), the ubiquitous tram took you from one corner of Bombay to another, giving you

This article was originally published on October 31, 2021.