-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The second tenure of the UPA coalition has witnessed a sharp slowdown in growth, stubborn prices, high interest rates and faltering business confidence. While there are some tentative signs of a revival on the horizon, the Indian economy is still not out of the woods and experts say sustained policy and governance reforms are needed to lift Asia's third-largest economy back to its potential growth rate...
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A report card for India’s states -Pranjul Bhandari
-Live Mint Cherry-picked indicators of progress cannot convey the complexities of development in India's diverse states Which Indian states have fared better than their peers and which ones have done relatively worse is a perennial question for discussion. There is more at stake than mere grading of states here. Investment flows, central government funds and praises for being a good state are all linked to this seemingly straightforward question. It seems to...
More »Reforms’ unintended fallout -Ashoak Upadhyay
-The Hindu Business Line A mint-fresh working paper by the Reserve Bank of India once again trains the spotlight on a problem that, for five decades, every policy-maker has planned to snuff out, failed to, and then wished it would go away if ignored. But financial exclusion simply hasn't, and we now have the central bank applying its forensic skills to an examination of its magnitude. The title of Working Paper Series...
More »CAG, food security and good sense -Tejinder Narang
-The Hindu Business Line A new CAG report offers valuable insights into the likely implications of implementing the proposed food security law. The National Food Security Bill (NFSB) couldn't be passed in the Parliament session that ended last week, despite a spirited promotional pitch by its proponents - including Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen. Last week also saw the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) table its report on "Performance Audit of...
More »Women SHGs to get loans at lower rates - Elizabeth Roche
-Live Mint Cabinet clears proposal to give loans at 7% interest rate, and 4% if SHGs repay loans within the stipulated period The federal cabinet has cleared a proposal to give loans to women self-help groups (SHGs) at 7% interest rate, cheaper than the existing 11.5-14%, bringing the cost of loans on a par with those given to farmers. SHGs that repay loans within the stipulated period will be eligible for loans at...
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