Wednesday, December 06, 2017

R K Mohapatra's Handy Guide to Investment - a Value-Added Volume

A book for these times. The world has been reeling from an economic downturn for some time now. Perhaps India has been somewhat sheltered from this slump. For one thing, not many Indians have, in any case, access to our Government’s schemes for its citizen. Illiteracy, for one thing and corruption, for another, have kept us working hard, with low or no expectations for relief. However, we’ve now in power forces that seem bent on creating waves. Demonetization apart, we’re being bombarded by various financial experiments and it is natural for some of us to wonder what will happen and how we will be affected.



Thus, while this book might be a solid guide for financial planning, one wonders how its advice will work in the new contexts - today’s news says our FDs may be in danger.

However, Mohapatra’s book contains principles which are the backbone of good financial planning and will be a boon to all Indians, and, I daresay, to a great many elsewhere too.

Investment - Risk and Growth is a 136 page book, with 7 chapters, 3 annexures and an appendix. The 10 page introduction is rich, in itself,  with sane and sensible advice and cautions. The print and font and quality of the paper are honest and lend to ease of reading. Using tables and infographics, the author leads the reader through the essentials of financial planning before launching into more details in the chapters that follow.



The chapters cover the various investment options and instruments along with the risks and benefits of each. The annexures provide handy tables for those who plan to take serious steps to empower themselves financially. And the appendix provides a cost inflation index which is as recent as was possible for the author.

Priced at 200 Rs., this book would make a fine and worthwhile gift to any young person but also a nice one for older people as well as those who have retired. For anyone who reads this valuable resource can then be an asset to any who turn to them for advice. I would go so far as to say that it should be available to undergraduates too. After all, in our times, it is better to be well prepared well in advance.

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