India, Feb. 1 -- I would like to tease out the underlying themes in this year's Union Budget but leave it to the pundits to give their customary budget rating. What I found noteworthy was the underlying internal consistency of the budget in pushing a set of themes in an integrated manner. I highlight the following six themes:

Global volatility and uncertainty: It was a relief to me that despite the drumbeat and chorus to stimulate demand, the finance minister did not get carried away and forego fiscal prudence. Given the level of geopolitical uncertainty and the potential volatility by the actions of the new Trump government, the finance minister's revised estimates for the deficit is below the target of 4.9% at 4.8%. The target for next...