-The Telegraph The world lauds us as the largest democracy. Yet, how much of a democracy are we and where must we improve? Elections and their consequences: We have regular elections. They are supervised with increasing effectiveness as far as booth capturing, bogus voters and violence are concerned. The influence of money has not waned; if anything, it has increased. It is not as it used to be, for paying voters only....
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Crippled by lack of clear directives-Alok Deshpande
-The Hindu Lack of directives on implementation of several clauses of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, has annoyed school managements in Mumbai, while education rights activists blame the lack of monitoring for chaos in admissions. In a city where admission fees in private institutions are sky-high, the demand for enrolment in ‘famous’ and convent schools is also increasing. According to sources in the Sarva Shiksha...
More »Runaway food prices highlight the need to unshackle the farm sector
-The Times of India Why isn't aam admi smiling? The question's relevant, since some cheer's apparent in government circles over wholesale price index-based inflation falling to 6.62% in January. Headline inflation, it's said, will drop further by March-end. To common people, the WPI inflation figure's a meaningless number. If WPI inflation's dipped a fourth successive month, food prices have been riding high for far longer. Policymakers periodically recommend release of foodgrains from...
More »A boon in the rural landscape: Data shows that the MGNREGA is doing more to create employment than many have argued recently -Neelakshi Mann, Varad Pande & Jairam Ramesh
-The Times of India Few government programmes are as debated in this country as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). Introduced by the UPA government in 200 backward districts in 2006, and extended to the entire country by 2007-08, MGNREGA has become a fact of life in rural India; on an average around 25% of rural households seek employment under the scheme annually. In recent times, it has become...
More »Don’t rush with cash transfers as it needs preparation-Ajay Chhibber & K Seeta Prabhu
-The Economic Times Cash transfer in various forms has been used in many countries to target support to the poor and achieve social objectives. In India, its introduction has generated more passion than rational debate. The scheme is not a magic bullet, but if properly implemented and targeted, cash transfer is a very sensible instrument of social assistance. In India, the rationale for introducing the scheme seems to be to check...
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