Razzle-dazzle works because we are suckers.

The Congress must be cock-a-hoop for having raised Rs 610 billion from auction of spectrum for cell phones. Telecom companies were bidding for 900 MHz band for 2G services and for the 1800 MHz band for 4G services. Of the amounts bid by the companies 25% of the final bids for 900 MHz and 33% of final bids for 1800 MHz have to be paid upfront which means that the government will receive Rs 182.96 billion before 31 March. This will allow our most revered Finance Minister to fill a big hole in revenues and claim victory in his efforts to keep fiscal deficit to 4.8% of GDP. But why are there holes that need to be filled when our most revered Prime Minister, a World Class Economist, says that economy grew at its fastest pace under his tender ministrations? So where did all that money go? Apart from wasting massive amounts on social schemes to bribe voters the Congress is spending Rs 1.8 billion on advertising to present it as a good thing. First use our money to bribe voters and then use more of the same on bluff. You have to give it to them. A sample of their razzle-dazzle occupies half the back pages of newspapers today. Proud photos of the Congress President and the Prime Minister above an advertisement which confesses to providing Rs 1.95 trillion in bank credit to minorities with further dollops of Rs 31.25 billion for scholarships and Rs 60.20 billion for Multi-Sectoral Development Programme and several other such schemes. Presumably minorities are also able to benefit from the MNREGA, farmers' loan waiver, Backwards Region Grants, reserved seats in private schools under the Right To Education Act, dirt cheap grains for dozens of children under the Food Security Act and myriads of other sweeteners so this is just the jam on the cake. Is it any wonder that our banks are collapsing under the weight of bad loans? But surely it must be a good thing to sell scarce resources to the highest bidder and use the funds to help the poor? It would be if the money was used on productive investment, such as infrastructure which would increase wealth. After the 3G auction, which raised Rs 677 billion, Telecom Minister, Kapil Sibal admitted," There is no liquidity in the market for them to invest in the infrastructure." After all, where in the world does a government extract a ' premium ' from companies building roads? We are suckers to fall for it every time.