Courts can help create lung space for cities
High courts should replicate for states what the Supreme Court has done for Delhi's environment, says M J Antony. What food coupons can and cannot do
Even if the government starts issuing vouchers which can be sold, a fairly early sunset will be written into them because of new technology clearly on the horizon , says Subir Roy. Why this will be India's century!
A Carnegie paper estimates India's GDP will grow at 5.9% p.a. till 2050, compared to China's 5.6%, says Jaimini Bhagwati. Should overseas deals be taxed?
Reinterpreting long-established tax treaty provisions by the tax authorities creates confusion and has to be avoided as it affects investment into India. Why Mamata's decision may cost Railways dearly
Mamata Banerjee's decision on land acquisition policy for dedicated freight corridor has very serious implications, says A K Bhattacharya. Column: Is the euro overvalued?
It will strengthen, because global economic conditions require the eurozone to run trade deficits. Why the rural jobs plan is a dud!
Former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi had said that well-meaning programmes meant for the poor did not reach them: the same is true of the NREGA, says Surjit Bhalla. Inclusive growth: Why Lohia's legacy is alive
Professing a commitment to equity is now a political necessity -- something that Ram Manohar Lohia advocated years ago, says Rajni Bakshi. The nation pays for pampered Delhi
Given the financial support and the makeover that Delhi is getting for the Commonwealth Games, Delhiites should not crib about some hike in tax, says T N Ninan. Biz families: Should sons step into fathers' shoes
oining the same profession one's father belongs to inevitably leads people to compare and contrast the son with the father How to tide over seed shortage
An acute shortage of healthy seeding materials for horticulture requires redrafting of the Seeds Bill, 2004. Can India be a great power in the post-Lehman era?
If India counts itself as a 'great power', it will have to play a role in framing and enforcing new global rules, says T N Ninan. Why the Foreign Universities Bill is elitist
The Bill suggests to the backward classes that 'the best from the West is not for you, the home-grown is good enough for you', says Rama Bijapurkar. JNNURM: How has it transformed cities?
Urbanisation in India has been like climate change in the world. It has been happening inexorably for decades, not receiving much attention, its significance not noted. 300 million Indians live in towns and cities, underserved by utilities, with inadequate housing, and now choking in traffic. NREGS: Tamil Nadu's success story
The Tamil Nadu development formula makes programmes like the NREGS work through simple but top-down solutions. Column: Educating Kapil
A nation must educate its own, foreigners can only help at the margin. Climate change: What will happen to our forests?
Foresters should not succumb to the temptations of easy money for carbon sequestration Intellectual property rights: Brazil vs US
Brazil plans to break IP rights on American drugs, music, software and movies as retaliation for its cotton subsidies. The feasibility of Tobin tax
Tobin Tax has immense potential when used along with complementary policies such as counter-cyclical and macro-prudential measures. Retaining talent: Are companies doing enough?
A McKinsey survey shows very few firms focus on building the capability that adds the most value to performance. SC did well to reject government blackmail
Economic reform entails reducing the space for arbitrary decision-making and ensuring transparency in policy. GM crops are part of India's and world's future
New-age genetic research and technology brings new life to an old economy industry, one that is amongst the largest employers in the country. Educating India, in a B-Grade American style
Nothing can be more dangerous than programming the mindset of the young generation of India through an education system that has nothing to do with the great culture. Column: The end of an era in finance
IMF's change of heart on capital controls is important, but it needs to be followed by further action. Of media balance sheets and transparency
Why don't media companies work harder at having annual reports and balance sheets that are well arranged, easy to read and comprehensible? Capitalism that we can be proud of
Rajni Bakshi on why some kind of transformation in the culture of capitalism is inevitable. Budget helps conmen, not the common man
A change that the Budget proposes to make could end up helping Indians who might have laundered their ill-gotten money, says M R Venkatesh. Biotech Bill: Sweeping powers, glaring omissions
The biotech regulatory Bill gags dissent and takes away the power of states without providing any safeguards to farmers and consumers. Why this is a 'good-average' Budget
The expenditure cuts are one-off, too much has been given away in tax cuts and there are few green shoots of reform. No end to this circus called Budget
For how many more years will the annual Budget circus continue in its current form? This is a question often asked at post-Budget seminars held across the country every year around this time. Why govt must NOT focus on slum-free India
In his recent Budget speech, the finance minister reiterated the government's plans to make India "slum-free" within five years. How safe are your dollars?
They may well be, but investments in euro-denominated bonds will give higher safe returns, says Martin Feldstein. Please give Mamata an air ticket to China
Mamata should travel to China to see how the Chinese railway system is expanding, says T N Ninan. Budget: A new paradigm for India
Budget 2010 went far beyond most recent Budgets in that it defined an entirely new paradigm for the Indian economy. The best way to influence consumers
For many big brands, investment in advertising is as big as the amounts spent in setting up factories and other infrastructure. How SBI has become a preferred employer
HR audit, Strategic Training Unit, leadership development - SBI is doing all that it takes to be an employer of choice. Road projects, flyovers: A major scandal?
Mahesh Vijapurkar smells a scandal in the BOT model for road projects. The absurd MNC-backed 'India Project'
MNC-backed IP summits try to influence sitting judges on patent law enforcement issues pending in Indian courts. The need for innovative spectrum management
Telephony and broadband need innovative spectrum management. How real is Bihar's high growth story?
Bihar's own Survey shows much lower GDP numbers than the CSO does - nor is there any rational explanation for the higher figures. Tension between FinMin and RBI on the cards
The FM's proposal on new banks and a Financial Stability and Development Council could spark tension with RBI. Budget: Are the upsides greater than the downsides
Given the tight control on expenditure the finance minister has exercised and how niggardly the increases have been on flagship programmes - Bharat Nirman has risen from Rs 32,473 crore (Rs 324.73 billion) to Rs 35,953 crore (Rs 359.53 billion) and employment guarantee from Rs 39,100 crore (Rs 391 billion) to Rs 40,100 crore (Rs 401 billion) - it's natural to wonder whether the deficit reduction targets are for real. Trusteeship and how it can spawn development
If the endeavour that was flagged off in Udaipur flourishes and diverse energies combine to refine the lens of Trusteeship, 'growth' itself could be redefined. Then 'inclusion' will be an inherent rather than a separate goal, says Rajni Bakshi. Reviving agriculture: What the FM missed
The agricultural growth package mooted in the Union Budget for 2010-11 seems well conceived but not adequately supported by funding for its key elements. This, surprisingly, is despite the 21.6 per cent increase in the overall Central plan outlay for agriculture and allied sectors, the highest hike in recent years. Finance ministry: Return of the Gladstonians
The global financial crisis has empowered fiscal conservatives in India. February 2010