The Wealth Issue 2021

A year after dealing with wealth in adversity, we find ourselves headed back to normality. This time last year, the second wave of Covid was still months away, and no one could have predicted its severity. But when it seemed to overwhelm us, we couldn’t have foreseen that in October 2021, India would have administered more than one billion vaccine doses. Or that its economic recovery would be among the more heartening stories. Consequently, on the eve of Deepavali, we can contemplate wealth in more traditional terms—what it means and why it’s a good thing. We can deepen our understanding of how the idea of money has perhaps changed for good while new forms of wealth are making some people rich. We can examine how philanthropy is being redefined, or why gambling endures. In a year seen as a vindication of wealth creation—the Prime Minister speaking up for it; Air India returning to private hands—we would do well to remember that a society cannot fight poverty without wealth. Artha is both a necessity and an obligation

Air IndiaCovid-19economic revivalpandemicWealth Issue 2021