-The Indian Express The growing influence on policy issues of activists who call themselves “civil society” is a worrying trend and needs to be objectively analysed. Two recent policy pronouncements will illustrate how government seems to be yielding to their pressure. It is well established that absenteeism of teachers and poor quality of outcomes in government schools is the main factor behind the popularity of private schools with poor infrastructure that cater...
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Understanding FDI in Retail: What Can Economic Principles Teach Us? -Abhirup Sarkar
-Economic and Political Weekly The recent debate on the acceptability of foreign direct investment in the retail sector in India has been mostly political. It is necessary to look into the pros and cons of FDI in retail from a purely economic point of view. This article identifi es the safeguards that should be undertaken before allowing giant multinationals to function in the country. Abhirup Sarkar (abhirup@isical.ac.in) is with the Indian Statistical...
More »10 reasons why India has a sexual violence problem -Olga Khazan and Rama Lakshmi
-The Washington Post The case of a 23-year-old medical student who died Saturday after a brutal gang rape on a bus in New Delhi has seemed to snap India to attention about its endemic sexual violence problem. Hundreds of Indians poured into the streets of New Delhi to mourn the young woman, and police announced that the six men arrested in connection with the attack had been charged with murder. In recent...
More »The fax-email democratic republic -Garga Chatterjee
-DNA The notice has been served to ‘the people’. The Justice Verma Committee, set up to review the present criminal laws relating to safety and security with an eye to amend them, has asked ‘all members of the public’ among others to respond with ideas, knowledge and experience, to assist the committee in reaching its objective. The notice has been published in many newspapers. This mode of public consultation is not new....
More »Panel to ‘fix responsibility’ for gang rape Delhi back to normal
-The Telegraph The government today set up a commission of inquiry to identify lapses that may have led to the bus gang rape and “fix responsibility” even as the capital limped back to normal after a violent weekend. Police let vehicles ply on the 2.5km stretch between India Gate and Rajpath, locked down for the past two days since Sunday’s protests. The decision to set up the commission is the latest among several...
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