-Live Mint The mid-day scheme is underpinned by a rent-seeking chain that keeps all the major stakeholders satisfied The mid-day meal (MDM) tragedy in Chhapra once again focuses attention on the low-level equilibrium that our public systems are trapped in. Consider these facts. Apart from rice, which has to be collected from the local ration shop, the MDM programme allocates each primary and upper-primary child Rs3.11 and Rs4.65, respectively to purchase pulses,...

-The Hindu The expenditure on providing food security will add minimally to India's public spending which is less than what even lower middle income Asian countries spend on social protection In recent media coverage, critics often argue that the cost of the National Food Security Bill (NFSB) is excessive. The Economic Times referred to the NFSB as a "money guzzling measure" and according to CNBC-TV18, Rahul Bajaj, chair of Bajaj Auto, said...

-The Times of India The ongoing 'Bhagwati versus Sen' debate has generated more heat than light, necessitating correction. As an equal co-author of India's Tryst with Destiny, which defines the Bhagwati position, my stake in the debate is second to none. Two extreme characterisations of the positions of the two sides have emerged. The first has it that the differences between them are minimal with each side expressing the same ideas in...

-Down to Earth   Despite high cost of treatment, private sector still takes care of 80 per cent of all outpatient care and about 60 per cent of all inpatient care A study on healthcare costs in India has reaffirmed what everyone knows-that private hospitals are not affordable for the common man. Getting treatment in these hospitals is at least 20 times costlier than the healthcare provided in district government hospitals, reveals the...

-The Business Standard Can Bhagwati-Sen debate bring the same change as Hayek-Keynes duel in the US in 1932 At a time of economic crisis, a distinguished group of economists wrote a letter to a major newspaper, making a case for increased government involvement in the economy. A few days later, an equally distinguished group of economists wrote a letter to the same newspaper, arguing against the first lot. No, this...