An inquiry committee appointed by the Supreme Court to look into the functioning of the public distribution system has just turned in a damning report to the effect that the system is riddled with corruption and has virtually collapsed in some states. This observation will not come as a surprise to most people. Indeed, it is not a coincidence that even the Central government’s own Economic Survey mentions the need...

Political influence and interference hampering distribution, says court-appointed vigilance panel  Large-scale diversion of foodgrains; black marketing by fair price shop dealers All-round complicity among FPS, transporters and corrupt Civil Supplies officials The Supreme Court-appointed Central Vigilance Committee (CVC) has slammed the Public Distribution System as one of the most corrupt sectors, saying the root cause of its failure in several States is political interference. “Corruption is all pervasive in the entire chain involved...

Many of our politicians would still rather ignore the informal sector and the women who form its backbone. They do so at our peril. India is undergoing enormous change. In a very short time, many Indians have become much richer, and our country is now often described as a “world player” economically and politically. Despite this transformation, our rich history, culture and traditions rightly remain important. Indeed, our success rests...

It's a myth that the global financial crisis left India virtually UNSCathed. In fact, India is the biggest victim of financial crisis-induced poverty, according to data obtained by TOI from the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs' (UNDESA). Check out these figures. The UNDESA data estimates that the number of India's poor was 33.6 million higher in 2009 than would have been the case if the growth rates...

Continuing with its campaign against “paid news,” the Editors Guild of India has asked the Election Commission (EC) to take strong action against politicians and mediapersons who violate the disclosure norms of election expenditure with regard to media publicity. Members of the Guild met Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Navin Chawla and his colleagues on Friday and submitted a memorandum articulating the demand while expressing concern over the “paid news phenomenon.” They...