The Budget season is in full swing and allocations for various sectors being hotly debated upon both by policy makers and the public at large. What is important to remind ourselves, is that where this will lead this country of over one billion, facing challenges of balancing Economic Growth with social justice and equity. Food Security has moved from an issue of the poor and hungry and those who advocate their cause...

This book discusses a new poverty agenda for Asia and the role of social policies in economic transformation and reducing poverty. The poverty-reduction agenda is well known. So is the debate over poverty. No one disputes the fact that poverty of income (or expenditure, as countries such as India do not collect household data on income) is an imperfect measure of poverty, as there are non-income dimensions, too. Consequently, we...

The Budget should be an instrument of economic discipline and a promoter of healthy social development. As it is, it is like a leaky tap; it cannot halt inflation without disciplining political skulduggery. March 21, 2011:   A lot has been written about the Budget, how it affects this or that industry or business, or how it will increase or decrease the GNP growth rate. Undoubtedly, all those factors are important. But...

Global business abhors uncertainty. The ministerial-level corruption in UPA-II has slowed FDI and FII inflows. The stock market, despite double-digit corporate profit and 8.6% GDP growth, reflects the anxiety of Indian and foreign investors. To take India's growth story forward in the 20th year of economic reforms, political reforms must catch up. Misgovernance won't do in a globalised, interconnected world. Two kinds of political corruption blight India: episodical and ongoing. Episodical...

Food inflation, hovering in the double digits, may play spoilsport to India’s ability to continue its rapid Economic Growth. It is truly troubling that food still consumes half of the expenditure of the average Indian household. No wonder a sharp spike in onion prices has the potential to upset the political calculus of social stability. India’s biggest challenge still remains ensuring food and nutritional security to its masses. Notwithstanding the nation’s...