India needs to realise it has an image problem, says Nobel laureate & economist Joseph Stiglitz

Nobel laureate and eminent economist Joseph Stiglitz on Wednesday said the difficulties faced by NGOs operating in India and the JNU controversy was affecting the country's image. He said that these issues put the country in the same group of nations like Egypt and Russia and can have a negative effect on foreign investors.

"India should be aware that it has an image problem. There are very few governments that have made it difficult for NGOs to operate or engage in harassment of universities. These events have had a strong effect on public opinion abroad. It puts the country in the club of countries such as Egypt, Russia and Turke," he told reporters in an interaction organised by Azim Premji University in Bengaluru.

"The other thing is obviously without my knowing all the details of JNU controversy ... the closing down action in any university puts you in a small group of same countries.

Turkey is another country. Most of these countries are authoritarian in nature ... That kind of thing can have very negative effect on foreign investors," he added.

He said organisations like Ford Foundation had played an important role in the development of India for decades and it should be a concern that NGOs as such are being subjected to conditions that make it difficult for them to function.

"There is a broad understanding of the importance of civil societies in the functioning of democracies across the globe," he added.

Stiglitz said if India, which is a part of global community, wants to grow as an open economy, it should address these issues.

He also said if these issues are right or wrong, it is for India to do a better explanation on JNU and NGO controversies.

"This is purely a statement without having evaluated the validity of those (issues)... I think - if those are wrong it is important for India to do better job of explaining and if they are right it is important for India to make sure that it is not doing those jobs," he said.

Asked whether capitalism has failed, economist Branco Milanovic, who accompanied Stiglitz, said this is the first time in history capitalism is dominating in practically the entire economic world.

"Earlier, we had different systems like socialism. Now it is only capitalism. So it is all about the different forms of capitalism. One has to acknowledge that we have never had a situation that we have now, that is private ownership is the means of production," he said.

Joining the issue, Stiglitz said the US economy has not done enough for their citizens, but the market economy cannot be blamed for this.