-TheWire.in Mexican economist David Barkin on India's neoliberal economics, growing inequalities, agrarian distress and more. David Barkin is Professor of Economics at the Metropolitan Autonomous University in Mexico City. He received his doctorate in economics from Yale University and was awarded the National Prize in Political Economics in 1979 for his analysis of inflation in Mexico. His research has focused on the development of an alternative to the capitalist economic model. In an...

-TheWire.in A government social audit conducted in April has found that 96.9% of people in Nagri block want to go back to the old public distribution system rather than continue with the Aadhaar-link benefit transfers. New Delhi: Even though a Jharkhand government social audit has confirmed widespread dissatisfaction with the Aadhaar-linked direct benefit transfer (DBT) pilot experiment in the public distribution system (PDS) in Nagri block, the project continues as before. The pilot...

-TheWire.in Paschimbanga Griha Paricharika Samiti, a Kolkata-based workers' organisation was granted a trade union certificate from the state government. New Delhi: The exploitation and abuse of domestic workers has been prevalent in India for many years now. In addition to being overworked and underpaid, domestic workers are often ill-treated and in some cases, even physically attacked and sexually harassed. The efforts of Paschim Banga Griha Paricharika Samiti (PGPS-West Bengal Domestic Workers Society), a...

-TheWire.in With pending dues of Rs 22,000 crore, sugarcane farmers in the country continue to suffer as the Centre’s package to ‘address the current crisis’ proves thoroughly inadequate and misdirected. The Wire takes a deep dive into the sugarcane crisis. Shamli: On a hot May afternoon, a long queue of tractor trolleys loaded beyond capacity with sugarcane, are lined up outside the Upper Doab Sugar Mills in Shamli district – in...

-TheWire.in The government has fixed the insurance reimbursements for 1,354 medical procedures under its massive new scheme. They say they won’t revise this any further. New Delhi: Despite protests from the private health sector, that the government’s reimbursements to them under the massive new health insurance scheme are too low, the government has “frozen” these rates and is unlikely to change them. “The package rates are now frozen,” said health secretary Preeti Sudan. Dinesh...