-Firstpost.com * The stark divergence in banks’ estimates vs that of the RBI has raised many eyebrows in the investor community prompting them to avoid such companies till clarity emerges * Recently, Bank of Baroda reported a divergence of Rs 5,250 crore in gross NPAs for the year ended March 2019 * Ever since divergences came to public, banks have begun to make higher provisions to cover up the mess An element of trust...

-The Hindu Business Line Noted Gandhian economist Dr Sudarshan Iyengar surveys the distressed agricultural landscape, pinpoints its weaknesses, and prescribes solutions with their roots in Gandhian agronomics. Edited excerpts from an interview to BusinessLine: * Given the agrarian crisis in India today, how relevant are Gandhi's economic principles based on the village economy, and equitable distribution of resources? They are relevant in the context of Gandhi's view of gram swaraj (village self-rule), which...

-Newsclick.in Data confirms an acute demand crisis in rural India and beyond. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s latest statement on millennials contributing to the auto industry slowdown by shifting their preferences—choosing Ola or Uber ride-booking services instead of buying cars—is feeding many a meme on social media. Even before her statement, sections of industry and the banking sector had been pushing this argument. Not just private banking giants, such as Uday Kotak, but even...

-Livemint.com The farm loan waiver terms make little sense in Punjab where average landholding is over three times the national average Patiala/ New Delhi: All that Jagdeep Singh wants is a few hours of peaceful sleep. The 24-year-old from Sangatpura village in Punjab’s Patiala district had no clue that the morning of 11 December would change his life forever. At six in the morning that day, he woke up to the sudden...

-The Hindu The Indian education system would be a good place to start with reforms, says the development economist Jean Drèze is possibly the world’s most famous Belgian-Indian. He has lived in India since 1979, and is an Indian citizen. As a development economist and activist, he has helped draft some startlingly pro-people legislations, such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005, and the National Food Security Act, 2013....