-Deccan Herald Just recall the scene in parliament when the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act was passed in 2005. In Lok Sabha, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee put forth the motion – “Those in favour, say aye” – a unanimous chorus rose from the packed Lok Sabha. “Those against, say no,” – there was dead silence. “I think the ayes have it!” he said – and a seminal, landmark legislation became a reality. As then...
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A story of neglect -Paranjoy Guha Thakurta
-The Asian Age Is the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) a “living monument” of the failure of the economic policies of the Indian National Congress which has ruled the country for all but roughly 14 years since August 1947? Or is it that the MGNREGA, a law enacted a decade ago which seeks to implement the world’s biggest and most ambitious job creating scheme, one of the few...
More »Pulled to the Centre -Prabhat Patnaik
-The Telegraph The Narendra Modi government's decision to abolish the National Development Council is a further blow against the federal structure of our republic. True, the NDC did not have a constitutional status, and differed in this respect from the Inter-State Council, whose activation was often demanded by the Left, precisely because it was a constitutional body, for deciding inter alia on the composition and terms of reference of finance commissions....
More »The case for full disclosure -Anuradha Raman
-The Hindu Now is a good time to debate the criteria which enables the government to keep secrets instead of making everything public. On January 23, Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered on his promise and released 100 files on Subhas Chandra Bose in the presence of the freedom fighter’s family, which has persisted with its demand for declassifying all documents that could shed light on his mysterious disappearance and probable death in...
More »After the Delhi experiment -Krishna Kumar
-The Hindu Whether the memory of the odd-even experiment will inspire us to lead healthier lives depends on the willingness of the so-called aspirational classes to engage in a deeper debate on development It will take time and expertise to assess the odd-even experiment in Delhi, but there is no doubt that it was educative. It taught the government that the public is now ready to support radical measures on air pollution....
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