-The Tribune Is there a case to be made for privatisation to help the government raise funds and reduce its fiscal burden and avoid having to recapitalise them every now and then? It is based on an entirely faulty understanding of why the govt needs to own banks. Banks are instruments through which capital flows into the economy. Bank privatisation is a hot topic again. It kicked off when Finance Minister Nirmala...

-The Tribune This is a crucial moment for Modinomics. Till now, government schemes have been used to help the poorest of the poor survive, even when they do not have any regular source of income. The middle class has continued to back the PM, hoping his policies will yield dividends. The industrial recession has shaken that belief. It could well be the beginning of their disenchantment with the PM. IN 2014, journalist...

-The Tribune LIC is India’s biggest stock-market investor. Once listed, it might be tempted to increase its exposure to equities. We know what that did to India’s most popular mutual fund in the late 1990s. UTI’s US-64 collapsed because it had made too many risky investments. Most of 20 crore small investors never recovered investments A few years ago, I was part of a jury to select the best businesses in India...

-Newsclick.in Children go hungry in India while granaries overflow and corporates get mega tax-breaks. As a child, I never liked eating liver. I would gaze at my plate for ages, as I sat ruminating at the table, well after everyone else had finished their meals. “You are wasting your food,” my mother would scold me, “while children in Ethiopia are dying of hunger.” I am not alone. Almost all of us would...

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; *...