TOI2012 ⁽¹⁰⁾

Read full article Abstract: Today, we celebrate the 88th birthday of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee who, along with Narasimha Rao, must be credited with laying the foundation of the new India. To date, he also remains the only non-Congress prime minister to serve a full term. A member of Parliament for over four decades, Vajpayee served as India’s prime minister from March 1998 to May 2004. With Yashwant Sinha as finance minister on his side, he transformed the economic policy framework wholesale. Telecommunications, civil aviation, banking, insurance, public sector enterprises, foreign trade and investment, direct and indirect taxes, agricultural produce marketing, small-scale industries reservation, urban land ceilings, highways, rural roads, elementary education, ports, electricity, petroleum prices and interest rates were all subject to far-reaching reforms during his tenure.

Read full article Abstract: The experience with the latest package of reforms has provided further support for my hypothesis that when ruling politicians blame the lack of progress vis-a-vis reforms on missing consensus, that consensus is missing not among people but within the cabinet. Whereas the Indian public today fully appreciates the benefits of reforms, it is politicians who lag.The opposition parties had claimed that the latest package of reforms would damage millions of shopkeepers (FDI in retail), transport workers (diesel price hike) and urban households (subsidised LPG cylinders). Yet, none could translate that supposed harm into sustained anti-reform demonstrations in the public space. EvenMamata Banerjeefound her huffing and puffing going to waste, as her normally attentive Kolkata crowds greeted her with indifference.

Read full article Abstract: Perhaps the most powerful argument used by the proponents of the so-called Food Security Bill to further expand the highly inefficient, corrupt and leaky public distribution system (PDS) is adult hunger and malnutrition. Serious flaws exist, however, in both the diagnosis and prescription the proponents offer.Civil society groups and international organisations such as the World Health Organisation, Food and Agricultural Organisation and World Bank contend that one-fifth or more Indians suffer from hunger and many more from malnutrition. But this contention is principally based on the steadily declining trend in calorie consumption in India during the last two decades. The trend has been observed among all classes of consumers whether rich or poor, rural or urban.But when asked in the nationwide expenditure surveys whether they have had enough to eat throughout the year, the responses of Indians have shown exactly the opposite trend. Those replying in the negative to the question were 17.3% in 1983 but fell to 5.2% in 1993-94, 3.6% in 1999-2000 and just 2.5% in 2004-05.

Read full article Abstract: I recently wrote about why the accomplishments of chief minister Nitish Kumar - that at last bring hope to Bihar - could not be underestimated. Today, i turn to Gujarat, which has been generally more prosperous in the post-Independence era and has performed impressively under chief minister Narendra Modi.

Read full article Abstract: Large increases in revenues, made possible by accelerated growth, have allowed the UPA government to rapidly expand redistribution programmes — distribution of subsidised foodgrain, free elementary education, rural health and the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS). But only a small fraction of the benefits of these programmes actually reaches the intended beneficiaries. Leakages along various elaborate government distribution chains are endemic. In sharp contrast to China, the government in India is hopelessly ineffective and inefficient at the delivery of social benefits.