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Latest Journal Issues
The second issue of Journal of Infrastructure Development (JID)
and the third issue of Review of Market Integration (RMI) came out in the month of June.
While JID focused on infrastructure issues across the world, RMI had an issue focussing on labour markets in India.
Journal of Infrastructure Development
Review of Market Integration Read more |
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Journal of Infrastructure Development
IDF has launched a journal, Journal of Infrastructure Development, for the month of June 2009. The journal seeks to provide a platform for healthy trade and debate regarding new ideas in the infrastructure sector. The journal looks at issues and concerns regarding infrastructure in India and in other countries in the world. Infrastructure would include physical, social, economic and financial infrastructure. The journal also looks at infrastructure issues specific to other countries at present but that may be relevant to India at a later date. Read more |
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Review of Market Integration
IDF has launched a journal, Review of Market Integration, in July 2009, the aim of which is to provide a forum for rigorous analysis on the role of markets and market-based institutions that ensure economic efficiency and welfare of the citizens. The broad areas are market integration and role of institutions in sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, services, infrastructure, labour, rural sector, financial/money markets, and role of institutions that promote market-based initiatives in India. Read more |
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Government's priorities
Development is not simply tax sops to the corporate sector or, investing in public sector enterprises; it is largely concerned with basic training, basic health and basic infrastructure to all. Governments can play a large role in these sectors since many of them require collective action. Read more |
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Budget 2009 - Unusually pessimistic
This Monday, however, when everyone wanted to know the economic steps the government has planned to weather the raging economic storm, it decides to pat itself on the back for its past well-intentioned, but poorly implemented initiatives. Read more |
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Analysing Multiplier Impact of NREGA Works
This paper analyses the multiple impacts of employment guarantee programmes in India within the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) framework. A village level Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) has been constructed in order to assess selected dimensions of the above impacts.
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Elections and Criminals
Known for its deeply entrenched caste based politics and overwhelming presence of MLAs with criminal charges pending against them, UP stood first in terms of violent crimes and crime against SC and STs in India Read more |
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Roundtable on Financial Inclusion
On the 10th of January 2009, IDF will organise a roundtable on "Technology for Financial Inclusion" at the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad. The outcome of the roundtable will be a white paper that defines the regulatory framework to encourage greater and universal access to financial services based on a technology platform that allows solutions that are otherwise infeasible. Read more |
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Waiting to Connect
IT use leads to workers being more productive and greater degrees of employment for both skilled and unskilled workers, though the ratio of skilled to unskilled labour increases with IT use. Most importantly, IT using companies pay more to workers and employees for lesser hours of work, i.e., the quality of jobs is bettered with IT use. Read more |
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India at the WTO
India’s participation at the WTO underwent massive change when it realised that the presence of tariff peaks and tariff escalation hampered its export interests to a major extent and that silence at WTO meetings was not going to help.
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India and the Global crisis
This point in time is certainly an opportunity for India to influence the pace and the pattern of globalisation in not only the financial markets, but the agriculture and the service markets too. As most multilateral institutions get reformed, they will need to be restructured to be prepared for shocks. Read more |
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Anti retroviral pricing
The growth in international financing for ARVs benefited generic manufacturers allowing the latter to expand market shares, increase competition and improve market
efficiency. Sonam Sethi at IDF advocates a greater emphasis on increasing access as only 28 per cent of the 7.1 million people in need of ART in lower and middle income countries were receiving treatment. Read more |
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The global crisis and India
As Economic Advisor to the Finance Minister Shubhashis Gangopadhyay says: “It is a huge opportunity for us if we play it right.” Playing it right, according to him means having “investor-friendly policies” in place. “Our own fundamentals are strong. We are not as dependent on the world as other emerging countries.” Read more |
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Transparency in SEZs
Founder-director of the India Development Foundation,Shubhashis Gangopadhyay is one of India’s most authoritative economists. Also a consultant to various government bodies, Gangopadhyay believes Indians need to be more alert to the government’s economic policies and should force New Delhi to make all global deals transparent. Read more |
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Inflation and Growth
Gangopadhyay said agricultural wage increase has stayed ahead of food price inflation and the rise in household income and increased income due to rise in wages are able to develop a demand base in rural India despite the price rise. Read more |
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The WTO deadlock
India believed that the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration effectively addressed its core concerns. A major developing country coalition (G-110) came into being. All developed countries are neither opposed to agricultural liberalisation (the Quad—Canada, Japan, E.U., U. S.—has been providing support to its domestic agricultural lobby) nor supporting it. Read more |
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Aiming for a double promotion
"To be a global trade player, you must be willing to open up to the world and be one with it. That mindset is missing in India. Moreover, its propensity to ban exports and imports at the first possible hint of danger makes it a highly unreliable trading partner." Read more |
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Policy making constraints
The standard argument in textbook economics is "to beggar thy neighbour’’, where each country raises its tariffs to get more for itself. The net result is highly distorted trade, with nobody being better off. Since India is a net exporter of some of these high-priced food items, the tendency of farmers would be to export such items and domestic prices could go up. Read more |
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The unconventional economist
The earring is, well, a bit different. But then, so is Shubhashis Gangopadhyay, adviser to the finance minister and, at 50, the youngest person to hold that post. Read more |
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The inflation story
According to Shubhashis Gangopadhyay, inflation would continue to stay in the double digit range for the rest of the year and will ease early next year. Growth this year will get negatively impacted too. Read more |
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Call for Papers - IDF launches two journals
IDF's Journal of Infrastructure provides a platform for debate in the infrastructure sector. The journal looks at issues concerning infrastructure in India and other countries.
IDF's other journal, the Review of Market Integration, provides a forum for rigorous analysis on the role of markets and market-based institutions that ensure economic efficiency and welfare maximisation.
Read more |
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Fuel subsidies
Petrol prices have finally gone up. It is encouraging to see the government has taken a step it should have taken long ago. Crude oil price is now close to $130 a barrel and there are predictions that say it will go up to $150 a barrel by the year-end, if not to $200 a barrel. Read more |
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Judicial Impact Assesment
The taskforce on Judicial Impact Assessment got two studies done, one each by the India Development Foundation and the Indian Institute of Management to fine tune the methodology for impact assessment of new laws. Data from courts of Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Delhi and Karnataka was collected. Read more |
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RUPEE RUN DENTS GROWTH EUPHORIA
Its appreciating value might give India an edge as a net importer, but the country’s small-scale exporters, who have narrow profit margins, may take a hit. No one — not even the mandarins of the finance ministry — wants to hazard a guess as to when the situation will change, even though Amir Ullah Khan of India Development Foundation, India’s top economic think-tank, remains optimistic. Read more |
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Governance in India
An economy in transition must quickly define the scope of governance and shape its legal structure.
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The Indian economy on a fast track
The phenomenal rise of India in the global economy has been attributed to a whole host of factors, the major ones being the focus on economic reforms, and the young population that India currently enjoys due to its demographic transition. Read more |
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Indian economy on the fast track
The phenomenal rise of India in the global economy has been attributed to a whole host of factors, the major ones being the focus on economic reforms, and the young population that India currently enjoys due to its demographic transition. Read more |
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Indian Economy and foreign trade
Rising imports in today`s economy is not the kind of bad news it used to be years ago. Today, a country that is capable of importing large quantities of goods and services can use these imports to produce more goods. Also, it has enough resources to pay for this level of rising imports. Read more |
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Shubhashis Gangopadhyay at the Finance Ministry
Shubhashis Gangopadhyay, Founder Director of the India Development Foundation joins the Finance Ministry as Adviser to the Finance Minister. Dr Vijay Kelkar, Chairman, IDF had last month taken charge as the Chairman of the 13th Finance Commission. Read more |
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End of nuclear isolation
The India-US deal on nuclear power has seen opposition from some familiar and some strange quarters. Now that it has been referred to a committee, its future appears uncertain. The debate has been interesting and throws up some fascinating aspects. Read more |
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Gross Domestic Product from Services Sector
This paper by Saluja and Yadav deals with the methodology and data sources used for estimating gross value added from different categories of services, especially from the unorganised sector. In this paper we discuss the problems in getting the estimates of workforce for the base year. Read more |
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Elections in Gujarat
The Election Commission has mandated that all candidates must submit an affidavit stating the pending criminal proceedings against them. These affidavits are in the public domain. Of the 667 candidates, 114 or 17.4% have cases pending against them.
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The Indian Economy
India today occupies the centre stage in the global arena, and economists the world-over are bullish on india`s unprecedented economic growth in the last ten years and it growth prospects for the future.
The large pool of human capital—a young, talented and well-educated workforce—is one of the major drivers of economic growth in the country. Rapid strides in knowledge-based industries, especially information technology, rejuvenation of the manufacturing sector, revolution in the agricultural sector and resurgence in exports have made India one of the fastest growing economies in the world. The opening up of the economy and growth in entrepreneurship has made India a sought-after destination for foreign investment.
The authors argue that this situation is a result of first generation economic reforms, initiated primarily by the central government. For inclusive growth, the onus is on state governments to carry forward a second generation of reforms.
In this context, the book examines:
- The state of the Indian economy after one and a half decades of liberalisation and its role in the fast changing global economy;
- the economic performance of various Indian states during this period; and
- sectors that have done well and those that need substantial improvement in terms of adoption and implementation of reform measures.
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States of the Indian Economy, 2007
This book argues that a key driver for growth in competing states has been the focus on infrastructure. Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu are progressive states because they provide better infrastructure, especially in rural areas. Karnataka, Andhra, West Bengal and Kerala are emerging states while the rest of the country lags behind.
Liberalisation and Globalisation have transformed a sleepy, heterogeneous and exotic nation into a dynamic, diverse and attractive destination for capital and labour. Driven by the centre, reforms have covered areas under federal jurisdiction. The way forward lies in second-generation reform in the States of India that have jurisdiction over subjects yet untouched by the reform process.
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Shubhashis Gangopadhyay's appointment
Shubhashis to join the Finance Ministry as the Economic Adviser to the Finance Minister Read more |
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Indian economy: Why is it important to reform Agriculture?
India`s economic history over the last sixty years has been a mix of the good, bad and ugly. Growth rates have increased and per capita incomes have gone up. Liberalization and deregulation have yielded impressive results, and the economy is increasingly integrated to the world. However, agriculture continues to be the backbone. Read more |
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The retail debate
There are two main reasons offered by those who are opposed to the entry of big corporations into the retail sector. First, it will drive out the small traders and destroy the income earning capacity of the many households. Second, big corporations will start dealing directly with the small producers. Read more |
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Employment Guarantees and the NREGA
The structure of the (NREG) scheme allows for only low-level manual skills to be used. Machines and contractors are explicitly prohibited. And since there is a positive list of likely projects that can be taken up under the scheme, most of the projects undertaken are in water conservation and water harvesting projects followed by rural connectivity. Read more |
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Haryana on a High
Infrastructure has clearly not kept pace with growth. The infrastructure problems for now are getting solved through stealthy privatisation. Read more |
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Indian Economy and the States
The authors of this lucid volume, both connected with the India Development Foundation, have done a tremendous job. They have rightly identified the states as pivotal actors in second-generation economic reforms, especially on sectors to be developed, namely agriculture and irrigation, both major and minor.
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The Indian Economy - States
India today occupies the centre stage in the global arena, and economists the world-over are bullish on india`s unprecedented economic growth in the last ten years and its growth prospects for the future.
The authors of this book titled States of the Indian Economy (SAGE)argue that this situation is a result of first generation economic reforms, initiated primarily by the central government. For inclusive growth, the onus is on state governments to carry forward a second generation of reforms.
In this context, the book examines:
- The state of the Indian economy after one and a half decades of liberalisation and its role in the fast changing global economy;
- the economic performance of various Indian states during this period; and
- sectors that have done well and those that need substantial improvement in terms of adoption and implementation of reform measures.
Read more |
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Certifying Job skills
Drivers, electricians, paramedics, midwives, cooks and beauty parlour workers might soon be able to get government recognized certificates after they finish courses at private institutions and then take a standardized test. To create 70 million new jobs in the 11th Plan (2007-12), the Planning Commission has recommended a public private partnership (PPP) model to enable skill development through short-term vocational courses, which may range from six months to a year.
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Gujarat elections
A quarter of all criminally charged BSP candidates have college and college+ degrees. This proportion changes drastically for the other two parties — 36 for the BJP and 39 for the INC. In short, if we are expecting education to get rid of criminality, we have a long way to go. Read more |
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States of the Indian Economy
A valuable resource for students and researchers of economics, politics, history and sociology the book takes a detailed look at the state of the Indian economy post liberalization. It lists out reasons as to why certain sectors have thrived while others have lagged behind. Read more |
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Shubhashis at the Finance Ministry
The UPA government has an all-new budget team to help frame a blueprint that would attempt to not just win the electorate’s hearts, but also push growth and reforms. To complement the Finance Secretary are revenue secretary PV Bhide and expenditure secretary Sanjiv Mishra, besides the chief economic advisor in the finance ministry, Arvind Virmani, and the newly appointed advisor to the finance minister, Shubhashis Gangopadhyay, who joined less than a month ago. Read more |
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Budget 2008
In March 2007 four leading economic policy research institutes came together for the first time to present their assessment of the development implications of the Union Budget 2007-08. The four institutes, ICRIER, IDF, NCAER, and NIPFP joined hands to provide a more reflective view of the Budget. For 2008-09, in another first, ICRIER, IDF, NCAER, and NIPFP were joined by the Centre for Policy Research (CPR) to add an explicit political dimension to the assessment of the Budget. Read more |
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India at the WTO
This book analyses the contemporary state of affairs at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and India`s negotiating agenda at its various forums. The WTO is important for all countries as more than 96 per cent of world trade is controlled by bodies affiliated to it. This book identifies areas in the WTO agreements that require systematic reforms. Read more |
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Prices in a free market
Prices can fluctuate in a free market. Over time, businesses take risks. Every time some business is in trouble, one should not want the government to step in to salvage it. Economy can be hurt because of high oil/food prices and the government is doing something about it. As for others, it has little to do.
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Waiting to Connect
IT will have a positive impact on India’s huge, but under-utilised manufacturing sector. Authored by Dr. Subhashis Gangopadhyay, Dr Manisha Singh and Dr Nirvikar Singh this study has come out with its bouquet of surprises Read more |
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Inflation due to domestic causes
Attributing rise in food inflation to domestic reasons rather than global factors, Finance Minister`s adviser Shubhashis Gangopadhyay said there are too many restrictions on the movement of farm products. Read more |
