-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 "The government has miserably failed to stimulate the domestic economy. It has spent less and less on public education, healthcare and infrastructure because of its erroneous policy" The Modi government has an ambitious plan to create a $5-trillion economy in the next five years — but all data points are heavily stacked against it. The economy is floundering and the Reserve Bank of India has already trimmed its growth forecast...

-PTI Their pear and apple harvest rotting, ration and cash running out — people in several parts of Kashmir are facing financial hardships due to the ongoing shutdown in major parts of the Valley, say three panchayat members from the region. Hailing from Anantnag district of south Kashmir, Talib Hussain, along with fellow panchayat member Iqbal Ahmed and Mumtaz Ahmed Khan, said they were in the national capital to let the...

-Press release by Common Cause dated 27th August, 2019     New Delhi, August 27, 2019: Common Cause and Lokniti Programme of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), launched the Status of Policing in India Report (SPIR) 2019 on the tough working conditions of the police in India at the India International Centre today. The release was followed by a panel discussion on ‘Indian Police and the Rule of...

-The Hindu The Western Ghats panel’s suggestions stressed the need to strengthen grass-roots governance In 2018, many people thought that the floods and landslides in Kerala that caused huge financial losses and manifold human tragedies marked a once-in-a-century calamity, and that normalcy will return soon and we can merrily return to business as usual. Further, the probability of two such back-to-back events was only 1 in 10,000. Hence, in 2019, a repeat...