What has changed since the economic reforms began? Many things. No waiting for years for a telephone connection, now cell phones with everyone. From three makes of cars with wind-down windows to dozens of makes, all air-conditioned. From one domestic airline, government owned and for the rich, to many private carriers for the Middle Class too. What has also changed is the knocking on the window. There are many more rich people...

The underlying assumption of the proposed Land Acquisition Bill seems that the price paid to farmers is unreasonably low due to dominant power of industrial buyers, requiring government intervention. The draft, however, may neither accelerate the pace of land acquisition for industry nor overcome the psychological barriers of landowners that impede land transfers. First, the psychological barriers that limit supply. One of the main reasons for the farmers’ (and land dependents’)...

India is finally ready with a comprehensive Bill that will protect children from sexual abuse. But the Bill, says author-activist Pinki Virani, has a major flaw regarding sexual consent that needs to be immediately addressed and the stakeholders consulted before it becomes law. With a certain Standing Committee so much in the news, let us look at what is happening with another Standing Committee looking into a Bill to protect children...

Submit the details of admission of students from weaker sections under Right To Education (RTE) till October 30 or pay fine Rs 10,000. This is the clear cut warning from the district education department to owners of the private schools of the district. Notably, six months have passed when the RTE introduced, but only few schools have submitted their admission record. Since the RTE is applicable for the students till...

Planning Commission’s affidavit to the Supreme Court states that adjusting for inflation, the poverty line for an urban person is Rs 32.5 per day per person and for a rural person it is Rs 29.3 per day per person. This has raised an outcry in media and the urban Middle Class, who consider them outrageously low. Based on these poverty lines, Planning Commission estimates that there are 40.74 crore persons...