-Scroll.in An excerpt from ‘South vs North: India’s Great Divide’, by Nilakantan RS. India’s states are unlike each other in the extreme. Haryana, one of India’s richest states, is six times richer than Bihar. In the years shortly after Independence, West Bengal was richer than most other large states in India when measured on a per capita income basis. Maharashtra, Punjab and Gujarat were close behind. In the last six decades, though,...

-The Hindu Brisker Puja sales may not implicate a better economic climate in West Bengal There is added enthusiasm in the celebration of Kolkata’s Durga Puja after its inclusion as the 14th entry from India in UNESCO’s ‘Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’ last December. But like most major festivals, Durga Puja is not just a cultural extravaganza; it is an economic lifeline for West Bengal. But do we have reasons...

-The Hindu Business Line Employment increased by about four lakh in the January to March 2022 quarter as against the previous quarter in nine selected sectors of the economy. The Fourth Round of Quarterly Employment Survey (QES) by the Labour and Employment Ministry revealed that the estimated employment increased to 3.18 crore in the fourth quarter of 2021-22 in the selected sectors as compared to 3.14 crore in the third quarter of...

Contrary to the rising economic distress on the ground since the last few years, the official press release related to the fourth Annual Report on the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) at first glance seems to give a rosy picture about the employment situation in India.  Defined as the percentage of persons unemployed among the persons in the labour force, the unemployment rate in usual status (principal activity status + subsidiary economic activity status)...

-Siasat.com New Delhi: An online/offline lecture on “Challenges faced by Minorities in the Current World Scenario, focusing on Indian Muslims” was organised by the Institute of Objective Studies on September 4. The event was organised to mark the occasion of the Institute’s 36th Annual General Assembly meeting. The lecture was delivered by Prof. Amitabh Kundu, the professor emeritus, LJ University, Ahmedabad, and a distinguished fellow at the Research and Information System for...