As much as 5.3 per cent of the Union Budget for 2012-13 is Budget for Children (BfC) with an increase of 0.3 per cent since 2011-12. This must be set against the inflation rate of 6.6 per cent. The increase can be attributed to the increased allocation in the development sector by 66.2 per cent and health by 29.7 per cent. However, as always, the share of the protection sector remains...

-PTI Retail inflation was at 8.83 per cent in February on account of higher prices of protein based items and edible oil products.  Retail inflation, based on the Consumer Price Index, was 7.65 per cent the January, as per the government data release here today.  Among other items, only vegetable prices saw a decline of 4.73 per cent over the February 2011 level.  During the month, the prices of egg, meat and fish rose...

The Economic Survey 2011-12 showcases the dividends of economic liberalisation started by the ruling party. But admits: growth is not possible without agriculture During the last financial year there were talks of the Indian economy finally decoupling from agriculture thus monsoon. The Economic Survey of 2011-12 disagrees with that. The survey has re-emphasised that whatever economic growth happened in the last fiscal it was due to agricultural growth. India recorded the...

The second green revolution found a mention in the Union Budget as a big achievement for the government. But, while paddy production went up manifold in eastern India, did it help its producers? In Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee’s home state of West Bengal, there was agony everywhere in the last few months, as paddy and potatoes were selling cheap and pauperised cultivators were killing themselves. The government was nowhere to procure...

An opportunity has been forsaken to strengthen our economic fundamentals while improving the lives of the people, increasing the divide between India Shining and India Suffering. While the people were hoping for relief in the current budget, the Finance Minister was faced with the task of reversing the slowing growth rate and raging inflation. He had a choice in this budget. He, however, chose a path that is going to worsen...