Calcutta Diary

Between the two World Wars, literature buffs were wont to spend an enormous amount of energy and talent to discuss the pros and cons of art for art's sake in creative pursuits. We appear to have run into a similar situation with the controversy on the role of foreign exchange holdings in accelerating national development. A theology is threatening to take over: foreign exchange holdings are for the sake of holding foreign exchange and we better desist from exploring other facades of the phenomenon.