-PTI 'If public spending is slashed, it will mean cutting down expenditure on social sector scheme." There is hardly any PRIvate investment,' explained Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley provided no indication today of any cut in excise duty on petrol and diesel to cushion the spike in rates, saying that the government needs revenue to support public spending without which growth will suffer. States levy a high amount...
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Narmada dam: Public finance, public play -Sudeep Chakravarti
-Livemint.com For the people of India and their “faith” in the Sardar Sarovar dam, it’s really a matter of public finance Optics is as air for politicians. It is no different for PRIme Minister Narendra Modi and what is commonly known as the Narmada Dam. But even air can sometimes get dense with rhetoric. On 17 September, Modi inaugurated the Sardar Sarovar Dam, the largest project of the Narmada, or Sardar Sarovar Project,...
More »Replacing take-home rations with cash transfers in aanganwadis is a terrible idea
-Hindustan Times Women don’t have enough power within households to insist that the cash provided be used for nutritional needs. The THR system is a way to ensure that they at least get some essential nutrition. The decision to do away with take-home rations (THR) in aanganwadis for infants under three and pregnant and lactating mothers, and to replace the scheme with cash transfers is not a good idea. The initial impetus...
More »Do we really need interlinking of rivers? -Himanshu Thakkar
-Livemint.com The river interlinking project will adversely affect land, forests, biodiversity, rivers and the livelihood of millions of people Interlinking of rivers is a very expensive proposal. It has huge adverse environmental impacts on land, forests, biodiversity, rivers and the livelihood of millions of people. It is a socially disruptive proposition. It will not only add to climate change impact (destruction of forests means destruction of carbon sinks, and reservoirs in tropical...
More »Has demonetisation harmed non-farm employment generation in the medium term? -Roshan Kishore
-Livemint.com Despite the construction sector being in the doldrums, personal housing was holding its own—till demonetisation PRIme Minister Narendra Modi promised to create 10 million jobs in five years while campaigning in the 2014 general election. After completing more than three years in office, has the government been able to deliver? We do not know for sure. Findings of a large-sample survey on employment, conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO),...
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