BOOK R&vmW n public sector. Briefly the above suggestion has the following implications^ firstly, in s6 far as the gap between the free market pride and controlled priSe ®f essential goods will be large^ there would be a^ upward revision of the controlled prices of essential commodities. Secondly, the increased retention price would result in higher profits to the producers. Thirdly, there would be an enhancement of indirect taxes on essential commodities. It is important to note that the last one is in contradiction t<^ their earlier suggestion that indirect taxes on commodities of common consumption should be reduced. As noted earlier the six economists attribute the "emergence of buoyant blackmarket in commodities" to "the failure of the government to take into account economic logic". Besides, they seem to agree with the Wanchoo Committee that tax evasion is due to "high marginal tax rates". Consequently, the six economists have favoured a drastic reduction of price controls and, implicitly, a scaling down of the marginal rates of taxation, as the effective means of disciplining the blackmarketeer and for wooing the blackmoney. Thus, the substantive aspects of the approach of the six economists amount to an indifference to landlordism in the rural areas; encouragement of oligopolistic firms through liberalised licencing and contrbl; attack on wholesale trade and price control; additional incentives to producers and so on—all in the name of temporary remedies defending-democracy and socialism. All that we can say is that leading economists should lead and never mis-lead. M J K THAVARAJ