Ten Commandments of IT security in banks
Excerpted from the inaugural address by Dr K C Chakrabarty, Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of India, at the IBA-DSCI Conference on 'Security Framework in Indian Banks', in Mumbai on April 26. How small exporters can get better profits
RBI and Sebi should modify the structure of the currency futures market to permit settlement by delivery of dollars ONLY from an EEFC account, says Jamal Mecklai. Why Greece will default on its debt
To not default, Greece's current deficit of 14% of GDP will have to fall to 5% which is unlikely, says Martin Feldstein. The crisis in economics
The free fall of economies could be arrested only after a massive coordinated effort by world leaders from the G-20 nations. How India can bring down cost of medicines
With the deadline for filing the information having ended on March 31, all attention is now centred on what the Patent Office will reveal in coming days. Three factors that can derail India's growth
Climate change, water, land won't be the only obstacle to India's growth prospects; water and land have an almost equal potential to derail things. The G-20, power, and ideas
The dispersion of global economic power augurs well for the role of ideas in policy-making. Learning to live with hawkers
The embattled Left Front has done one more volte face by deciding to regularise hawkers in Kolkata's busiest streets. Indians just don't trust the stock markets
The investor is voting for safe investment avenues and is not impressed by the lucre promised by Dalal Street, says Mahesh Vyas. How you can go 'green'
From Earth Hour to LEED ratings for buildings, from carbon footprint to carbon credits, the world is climbing onto the 'green' bandwagon. Forget IPL. Wanted, a JPC to probe tax havens!
Nothing could trivialise the sanctity of Parliament than a JPC on the IPL. We need a JPC to cover the tax havens and its impact on the Indian economy, says M R Venkatesh. Why politicians disagree with central banks
Central banks should be free to decide on monetary and credit policy. Why power of corporations needs to be curbed
Efforts to curb the power of corporations and assert the power of citizens through democratic processes are vital, says Rajni Bakshi. Warring regulators in an undefined world
As India moves towards a multi-sector regulatory regime, drawing lines within the regulatory framework and demarcating areas is of paramount importance. The next imbalance in the global economy
There is a need for coordination among emerging economies on managing capital flows and exchange rates, and China's exchange rate policy can help. That it is ready to be more flexible is welcome India must learn to fly
The first thing that needs to be addressed is Air India's cost structure. If it were a private airline, Air India could apply for bankruptcy, but as a national airline that option is not on the table, says Vinay Bhaskara. Urban India will be like a giant slum by 2030
Not paying attention to our cities is perilous and could result in massive urban decay. Why the climate deal is bad for us
There is no way the Copenhagen Accord can be billed as a climate change agreement. It is simply an agreement to legitimise the right to pollute. C K Prahalad - the man who knew strategy
Rajeev Srinivasan considers the legacy of the man who popularised strategic intent and the Bottom of the Pyramid. Business was not the guru's core competence
In a sense, C K Prahalad was behind the curve; he provided coherent articulation of existing best practices rather than providing future prescriptions. No government action on most CAG reports
If CAG indicts Raja, will action be taken? asks Business Standard. Infrastructure: More good news than bad
What's really interesting is that during the 10th Plan, about 25 per cent of the total investment in infrastructure came from the private sector, says Vinayak Chatterjee. What made CK Prahalad a management guru
Coimbatore Krishnarao Prahalad was insightful and definitely provocative. How lessons in micro-finance can help the poor
A rural women's university is pioneering an effort to teach microfinance through practical lessons in the villages of Sonepat. The paradox of hunger amidst potential plenty
Grain stocks in the current procurement season will be enough to feed all those who go hungry, and the FCI only needs to invest in proper storage facilities. 'C K Prahalad believed in markets and competition'
'For C K, the business of business must be to improve the world for everyone.' 'Prahalad believed India will become a leader'
Chairman and Managing Director of TVS Capital Funds Ltd Gopal Srinivasan was a student of Prahalad at the University of Michigan. In a tribute to his guru, he remembers how Prahalad had imagined India@75. 'We have lost a strategist of the highest order'
In the demise of C K Prahalad, the corporate world has lost a management guru and a corporate strategist of the highest order. While he will indeed be missed by all in the corporate world, his lifelong commitment and work towards helping shape the future of global economy will inspire and guide leaders all over the world for a long time to come. His fresh and ever-evolving business insights, and the sheer depth and breadth of his knowledge helped entrepreneurial ambitions Why there are few women in Indian boardrooms
The executive suites of most major companies still remain largely boys' clubs, but things are improving. Is appreciation of rupee inevitable?
It is not in our interest for the rupeee to rise against the dollar in which our exports are invoiced. Ulip war: Why Sebi order may not be right
The cornerstone of any efficient financial market is certainty and coherence in its regulatory framework. A word of caution on EU's trade agreement
Tough intellectual property rights sought by the EU in its free trade agreement with India have set off global protests Tharoor-Modi row: Conflict of business interests
There is nothing wrong in business persons and professionals entering public life and becoming ministers. But once they do so, they should keep at an arms length their private interests, both of their own and their near and dear ones. The much awaited RBI's Monetary Policy
Subbarao's annual statement will be of unusual interest this year The truth behind Parliament committee reports
Since few read discussion papers or Parliament committee reports on Budgets, this doesn't help policymaking Greece in troubled waters despite EU aid
The Greece package is aimed at rescuing foreign investors and delays the inevitable "rolling crisis" in that country Rupee rises despite higher deficits!
Only a mix of sterilised currency intervention and capital account management can halt the rupee's rise, says Shankar Acharya. Now, walk the talk on cities!
Citizens must start a campaign to convert prominent shopping complexes in cities into no-car zones, says Sunir Roy. The mammaries, revisited
T N Ninan on how the 'reformer' groups are milking the economy to serve their ends. Coping with Naxals: Plan panel's 7-point strategy
Working for the adivasis' well-being through means that secure their rights, honour their dignity and build a shared prosperity will make the Maoists irrelevant, says Rajni Bakshi. Luxury: How India differs from China
Luxury in India may not have gone 'mass market' as in China, but it has taken some very firm strides. RBI should take effective action to curb inflation
entral banks should move well ahead of inflation becoming a problem, while governments typically wake up when inflation becomes a problem Mastering the art of communication for future
Good command of written and spoken English will become one of the most sought after qualities in the Indian manager of the future. Column: India's appalling environment laws
The Lafarge mining case has highlighted the appalling weakness of the environmental clearance procedures at all levels, writes Latha Jishnu. Should RBI hike rates further?
RBI does need to keep signalling to the markets that it is tough on inflation. The politics behind slow economic reforms
Popular anguish over the slow pace of economic reforms has grown more intense in the last few weeks even as Congress President Sonia Gandhi takes charge as the head of the National Advisory Council and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's grip on the policy-making apparatus of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government appears to get weaker. India, US could agree on reinventing IMF
India is not particularly enamoured by the AMF idea and would much rather see the Fund revitalised and reinvented as a multilateral institution. Indeed, there could be a meeting of minds between India and the US on the IMF's future. Three tears for PSUs
The SC laments that they spend most of their time in covering their back rather than in achieving their goals. Higher industrial growth, more pollution
It took 10 years for the pollution load of industry to double, and then it took just three more years for this to rise by 50 per cent. Impact of climate change on Indian agriculture
Small and marginal farmers practising agriculture on rain-fed farms will bear the brunt of climate change How to bring fiscal discipline
Legislation on fiscal discipline will not help unless government is ready to bite the bullet. The cost of being a PSU
Air India has very often been slammed for living off taxpayers' money - an impression that was patently wrong till a couple of months ago when the first tranche of Rs 800 crore was given to the airline as additional equity by the government Will RTE help our education system?
Unrecognised private schools, which cater to the poor in slums and villages of India, have been under threat for a long time. What Geithner should and should not do
He should not publicly press India to open its financial sector. How much of business is truly customer-centric?
Customer centricity is about understanding the ecosystem in which a product is operating in the customer's life and working towards making every element of the ecosystem friendly and enjoyable to the customer. Lessons from E&Y and Lehman crisis
Perhaps these new revelations about E&Y and Lehman will inspire the govt to reopen the subject for more radical change. How to make BSNL, MTNL more relevant
The telecom majors should focus on improving service quality with a strong partner, and not on one-shot stake sales. Bt cotton: Monsanto is back in courts over royalty
Not all state governments have been kind to the global seed giant Monsanto. And cotton farmers have been less than grateful for the genetically modified technology that is said to have changed their fortunes dramatically. February 2010 | March 2010