I don't think policy makers surprise unnecessarily. You don't pick surprise as a part of your policy. Markets value a certain amount of predictability. But there are certain areas where surprise is a tool.

The few emerging economies that have avoided booms and busts have done so by adhering to sound policy frameworks.

Monetary policy is like juggling six balls... it is not 'interest rate up, interest rate down.' There is the exchange rate, there are long term yields, there are short term yields, there is credit growth.

Indian-ness, love for your country, is complicated. For every person, there is a different way that you show respect for your country... my mother-in-law will say karmayogi is the way to go - do your work.

In emerging markets, slow growth in the advanced economies has shut down a traditional development path: export-led growth. As a result, emerging markets have had to rely once again on domestic demand. This is always a difficult task, given the temptation to over-stimulate.

The idea was never for me to be a career bureaucrat or career technocrat; it was more about where I could implement ideas and reform programs.