-Hindustan Times During the Union Budget presentation, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday had announced that 2022-23 will be considered as the International Year of Millets. “Support will be provided for post-harvest value addition, enhancing domestic consumption, and for branding millet products nationally and internationally,” Sitharaman had said. The government’s assurance will boost states like Karnataka which has moved in the direction to diversify and incentivise production of these super foods. Please click...

-Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability (CBGA), February 4, 2022 Since 2006, Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability (CBGA) has been bringing out an analysis of the Union Budget every year soon after its presentation in Parliament. This publication aims to facilitate an informed discussion on the Budget focusing both on revenue and expenditure aspects, particularly around the social sectors, agriculture, rural economy, climate actions and provisioning of budgetary support for...

-TheWire.in What you lose on the wings, you gain on the roundabouts.  With no other major growth investments or policy reforms in the budget, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman made capital investment the lynchpin of the government’s growth strategy in Budget 2022. Stressing that “the virtuous cycle of investment requires public investment to crowd-in private investment” she took high moral ground to say that the “public investment must continue to take the lead and...

-Hindustan Times By prioritizing long-term growth via a capital spending push, the budget has underplayed the need for urgent steps to boost short-term consumption demand. Immediate analyses of the Union Budget are always focused on the headline numbers which the document contains. While these numbers are important , it is essential to take a big picture view of the economy to examine the validity of the budget’s larger premise. Such an exercise...

-Press release by NREGA Sangharsh Morcha dated 2 February, 2022 Notwithstanding the rural distress, implementing NREGA is a legal obligation of the Central government. However, the demand-driven nature of the Act has been repeatedly stifled in letter and spirit. By severe rationing of funds, it has been made a supply driven programme. Today is NREGA diwas and while we are supposed to be celebrating the idea of rural employment guarantee, we...