-Livemint.com Thankfully, India is enjoying a demographic dividend that gives it greater leeway for deficit-financing The dominant consensus on the slowdown in India is that we have a demand problem. Lack of aggregate demand is a phrase that goes back to John Maynard Keynes. He is a ghost who reappears from time to time, however much one tries to bury him. Regardless of whether you are a Keynes devotee or not, his...

-The Indian Express The Mudra Yojana was launched in April 2015 to provide funding to the non-corporate small business sector through various financial institutions like banks, NBFCs and Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs). The government’s constant refrain has been that its flagship Mudra scheme is an engine for entrepreneurship and employment. A survey by the Labour Ministry, yet to be made public, offers a reality check: just one out of five beneficiaries...

Among the measures announced by the Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman on 23rd August, 2019 to arrest economic downturn, the following are noteworthy: * Allow Bharat Stage IV (BS-IV) vehicles (which are purchased till 31st March, 2020) to remain operational for the entire period of registration; * Government shall lift the ban on purchase of new vehicles for replacing all old vehicles by its various departments; *...

-The Economic Times Government’s forced mega merger of public sector banks could scupper economic recovery. I am not saying we maintain a Panglossian countenance, that we smile away every difficulty. But, in any real economy, the mood is very important,’ observed Reserve Bank of India governor Shaktikanta Das, speaking at an event in Mumbai late August. Sound advice. Sentiment matters. Irrational despondency can be as damaging for the economy as ‘irrational exuberance’. But...

-The Telegraph An MP loses his entitlement to pension and perks if he is appointed the President, Vice-President or is re-elected to either House or gets employed in the government New Delhi: An RTI query seeking details on allowances and pensions to former MPs who are chief ministers has resulted in a strange reply. The information, the Lok Sabha secretariat has informed, was "personal", so details would not be shared. According to the...