#195 Missing In Action Is Here

<p>Wishing You a Great 2023</p><p>Others might begin the new year with resolutions, but we prefer excuses. Last year, we wrote only 42 editions. There was much to do in the remaining ten weeks. There was the Football World Cup, a few time-offs, a couple of vacations, and of course, a lapdog ate our laptops. If these honourable reasons weren’t enough, we add another: we wrote a book!</p><p>Our book<em> </em><em>Missing in Action: Why You Should Care About Public Policy</em><em> </em>will be published on 23 January 2023. Like this newsletter, it is a 'pop' public policy book in which we explain concepts through stories rooted in the Indian context. </p><p>We couldn’t have asked for a more helpful and encouraging team than our friends at Penguin India, who got us over the line and in time for a Republic Day release. The book is ready for pre-order now. You will have to excuse us for a bit of promotion that we will do over the next month or so on these pages. </p><p>So what’s the book about? </p><p>At the heart of the book is our belief in the core objective of public policy. It should increase the welfare of the citizens. Like the verse from Bhagavad Gita goes:</p><p>अनन्याश्चिन्तयन्तो मां ये जनाः पर्युपासते।तेषां नित्याभियुक्तानां <strong>योगक्षेमं </strong>वहाम्यहम्।।9.22।।</p><p>That word - <strong>Yogakshema</strong> - to preserve the prosperity and welfare of citizens is what public policy should be about. </p><p>We write this newsletter with the hope that it will, in its small way, move the needle on discourse. The book is a logical extension of this hope. Hope, as <a target="_blank" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shawshank_Redemption">Andy Dufresne </a>taught us, ‘is a good thing; maybe the best of things’. </p><p>We are hopeful about the future of India, but not in a misguided nationalistic way. We believe we can make an impact, however small, on the demand side of the policy equation. That making people aware of policy choices and helping them anticipate the unintended will lead to a change in the