Zooming Sensex

The Sensex more than just zoomed. It hit the upper circuit twice. Trading was halted for the day around noon.

Up 2100. Great sentiment all around.

This is the easy part. The next 5 years are what matter.

The UPA Home Run

What a season. It is curtains to the Great Indian Election Spectacle. And what a result. UPA hit a home run. And things look a lot more promising....

Some points to ponder.

First - Congress + BJP are over the 300 seat mark. Not bad. To me, it was important that the sum of seats of the country's ideological contrasts represent over 50% of the total number.

Second - the inclusive growth story continues to make inroads. A lot of analysis will come through in the next few weeks on why UPA won. To me, it was simple. Ask the person next to you on how the past 5 years were. Even if he were NOT to say 'Great', chances are that a good number would say 'Good' or 'Not bad at all'. This positive feeling HAD to rub off at the hustings.

Third - this election once and for all buried that much maligned term 'anti-incumbency' as if we voters were a bunch of morons who vote off parties just because we do not like their faces. Performance is always rewarded. Just ask the three-termers, Sheila Dixit in Delhi & Naveen Patnaik in Orissa.

Fourth - To continue on the previous point, Dr. Singh was truly King. It is amazing to see the goodwill this soft-spoken man enjoys. His firm stand on the nuclear deal won him admirers. And when word came in today that Montek Ahluwalia is his preference for Finance Minister, a lot more folks cheered. Montek may not get the post after all. But it is heartening to see the direction.

Fifth - economic reforms hopefully get accelerated & the current mandate gives the UPA a lot more room to maneuver. We need a lot of more years of 8+% growth to take us into the next league.

Last - I hope the extreme left & right undergo a course correction. They have become too ideological, to the discomfort of many. Moderation always helps and so does inclusiveness. A vibrant & principled opposition is what people need. Nothing would make me happier than to see a rejuvenated BJP ask cogent questions & put up a vigorous debate.

All in all, this has been a season of plum pickings. The Sensex will zoom tomorrow. But what matters is that the government takes the right steps so that the country zooms through 2014.