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A depressing flavour


Globalization has hit the Indian tea industry's fortunes hard. With brokers and buyers in apparent collusion workers bear the brunt, reports Ranjit Devraj.




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What can save Kerala's small coir?


With small coir manufacturers in Kerala unable to modernise their processes, their loss has become Tamilnadu's gain, reports P N Venugopal.




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A breach in the interlinking plans


Forced by the Supreme Court to make its research public, the agency that claimed to have conducted feasibility studies on interlinking rivers puts out an incomplete document. Sudhirendar Sharma notes, however, that the politics of this mega-project will keep it alive, despite such incompetence and disregard for regulations.




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Connecting outlays to outcomes


Although the government has spent large sums of money tackling problems, most social and economic indicators in the country are far short of the goals. Jaydeep Biswas and Debashish Sircar say we need better interim assessments of how money is spent, and social infrastructure to complement physical nation-building.




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'Regularly' employed in Chingrajpara


Can the small-time retail shop's employee or the truck operator's handyman claim more job protection than his wage labour counterpart? In this sixth article in our SLUM DIARIES series, Ashima Sood notes that the labour law framework is no more a friend of the small establishment's employee than it is of the casual labourer.




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'Middle class' palaces


Who is buying the new homes that are mushrooming in every city? What income group does this class belong to, and how does their affluent consumption compare to the national average, or to home-buyers elsewhere in the world. Darryl D'Monte finds some of the answers at a session with a human geographer.




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The enterprising labour of small vendors


The vendors and hawkers of the Chingrajpara slum in Bilaspur are the lynchpin of the slum’s homespun economy. In this seventh article in our SLUM DIARIES series, Ashima Sood notes that operating on small capital outlays, these petty retailers offer a humbling portrait of entrepreneurship in action.




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Snakes and Ladders in Chingrajpara


Even though caste barriers are far less visible in the Chingrajpara slum than in the villages its residents came from, how far one goes is still a function of where in the hierarchy one starts. Yet for many migrants, arrival in this Bilaspur, Chhatisgarh slum is the first rung on the ladder of upward mobility. Ashima Sood concludes SLUM DIARIES.




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Less scrutiny of PSUs planned


Financial audits of public undertakings can be conducted as in other firms, but how about audits of their administration? Himanshu Upadhyaya observes that the government's move to limit the CAG's mandate confuses financial scrutiny with oversight of governance issues, and the public auditor's role in the latter function is still vital.




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Entertainment tax bonanza in Kerala


The Kerala government gives the entertainment industry a huge tax break, by reducing dues from the operations of amusement parks. With no political party interested in opposing the drain on the treasury, taxpayers will be left to foot the bill for this largesse, note M Suchitra and P N Venugopal.




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The dams balance sheet


The establishment's appetite for large dams diminished marginally in the late nineties, but encouraged by the World Bank's low-key decision to restart funding, Indian governments are ready to start building again. But are large dams worth the expenditure? Tarun Jain and Ashima Sood report on the findings of a new research paper.




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Bt: Flaky results, pre-determined consensus


Can transgenic cotton ever be a livelihood security measure for the majority of India's small-holder farmers? Keya Acharya is circumspect. She says that the Bt cotton story in India is one of confusion. Bt appears more to favour 'rich' farmers, who have access to water, better resources, and alternative support.




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Villagers protest plans for salt factory


Against the wishes of the local people, and even the State government, a salt factory is proposed to be established on land that has been used freely by 20,000 villagers for decades. In the face of shifting politics, the residents are determined that they will protect their livelihoods. Aparna Pallavi reports.




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PPPs: Tall claims, but little evidence


The many arguments offered in support of Public Private Partnerships don't stand up to close examination. The private sector is not more efficient than its public counterpart, nor is cheap money accessible to it as readily, write Shripad Dharmadhikary and Gaurav Dwivedi.




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From snow ball to coconut lassi


This Kochi's couple's one-year-old enterprise is perhaps the only serious attempt to market snow ball tender coconut so far. And in their response to irregularity of supply, they introduced the coconut lassi. Shree Padre has more.




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Kerala crisis prescription: unconvincing, no rigour


It is nobody’s case that there is no crisis. But when remedies are prescribed, the diagnosis and the investigation have to be beyond dispute. P N Venugopal critiques a report from the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram.




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Inflation: perception and reality


There is an urgent need for reliable and transparent consumer price indices that covers the large majority of Indian families, from the poorest upwards. Kannan Kasturi reports.




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Kerala going greener


Apart from its high literacy rate, richer natural resources, and green public consciousness, the Kerala Government's decision to go for a green budget this year makes this tiny southernmost state a model to look up to. Darryl D'Monte has more.




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Seaplane grounded!


The Kerala government's pet 'Seaplane' project, initiated with minimal homework and impact assessment, has run into stiff opposition from environmentalists and local communities. P N Venugopal reports on the developments.




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60 to a dollar: Good, bad or ugly?


The recent plummet of the Indian rupee has elicited alarmist cries from different quarters, but what does it really augur? Shankar Jaganathan provides a historical perspective on relative currency movements to help analyse its possible implications.




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Irreconcilable differences : The Right-Left Divide in Economics


The recent clash between two eminent economists of our times, Amartya Sen and Jagadish Bhagwati, appears to be centred around the Food Security Bill. Shankar Jaganathan provides a historical context to show why their contradictions extend far beyond any isolated issue to a clash between two schools of the discipline itself.




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At Kandla, no room for marine ecosystem


The agreement between the Kandla Port Trust in Gujarat and the Adani Port & Special Economic Zone Ltd appears set to be passed without the kind of environment impact assessment mandated for an eco-sensitive zone such as this. Kanchi Kohli reports.




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Oxford study validates Indian environmentalist claims


The findings of a recent study by scholars at the University of Oxford point to the adverse outcomes and poor economic returns associated with large dam projects. Amruta Pradhan summarises the findings and shows how they have been consistently borne out by empirical observations in Maharashtra.




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Could Aadhaar be the game changer for footloose labour?


Several recent studies bring out the abysmal deprivation from entitlements among India’s vast internal migrant population. Shambhu Ghatak throws light on the problems faced by migrants and explores if the UID can indeed live up to its promise of making mobility a smoother process.




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How about smart villages, Mr Modi?


For over two decades now, agriculture has suffered overall neglect as successive governments, led by World-Bank prescribed growth models, have issued disproportionate doles to industry. While the present allocations do not spell much hope, Devinder Sharma suggests what the Modi government may still do to reverse the trend.




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Has the Modi government kept its promises on inflation?


S Venkatraman presents an interesting set of charts to capture the movement of the consumer price index and finds that the answer to this question may not be an easy one to arrive at.




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Kerala: A murky ‘state’ of affairs


From misguided attempts at prohibition and moral policing to scams in higher education and declining development, things in Kerala have been taking a rather sordid turn and hitting headlines for all the wrong reasons. P N Venugopal recapitulates some of the most recent developments.




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Kerala’s royal connection: The luxury ‘uru’


In the non-descript town of Beypore near Kozhikode, skilled artisans have revived in a big way the tradition of making luxury ‘urus’, or dhow-shaped boats, as they find a ready clientele in the royal family of Qatar. Akshatha M visits Beypore.




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Not everyone wants a plastic-free future!


A petition filed by an NGO before the NGT seeks a phasing out of the use of plastic bottles and multi-layered plastic packaging, but there is a strong opposition to the proposal from a significant section of stakeholders belonging to the industry. Devanik Saha reports.




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Kerala pioneer eyes new horizons for jackfruit industry


A new food processing company in Kerala proposes to market innovative products, the success of which could well place the largely neglected jackfruit in the focus of attention of bigger players in the state’s food processing industry. Shree Padre reports.




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Losing our rivers to grand plans


As per the National Waterways Bill recently introduced in the Parliament, 101 stretches of rivers in the country will be declared as National Waterways. There are many advantages of  waterways but these advantages will be realised only when certain conditions are met, and only under certain circumstances says Shripad Dharmadhikary.




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Demonetisation and the Rule of Law


Demonetisation is primarily about the Rule of Law in our country and the capacity of the state to ensure, and abide by, the Rule of Law, comments Harish Narasappa.




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Much hullaballoo, little cause


Of course the military should be prepared for conflict. However, whether to engage in such conflict, and how, is a decision for the civilian leadership, writes Firdaus Ahmed.




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Agitation looms in Kerala over National Highway widening


A massive agitation is brewing in Kerala against the proposed widening of Natonal Highways 47 and 17. It is spearheaded by the NH47- NH17 Joint Action Council. P N Venugopal examines their case.




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The strange case of ICTT Vallarpadam


A PPP project, hailed as a milestone in logistic infrastructure development at the time of launch shows scant growth three years later, costing the Cochin Port trust dearly in the process. P N Venugopal throws light on all that has gone wrong with it.




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Can Bangalore’s planners solve its commuter woes?


The need for integrating land use with mobility has never been fully addressed within the profusion of plans for Bangalore. The revision of the Master Plan for 2031 may provide a good opportunity to develop a comprehensive mobility strategy, says Shrimoyee Bhattacharya and Sujaya Rathi.




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A misplaced emphasis on highways?


The government continues with its blind focus on highways and expressways when infrastructure for water supply, waste management and mass transit system is in desperate need of attention. Kannan Kasturi says there is more to public infrastructure than just highways and expressways.




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Tiger census: four healthy landscapes possible


The Wildlife Institute of India's census report estimated 1,411 tigers in India’s Protected Areas. The report is significant for thorough and precise documentation of habitat loss for the tiger, writes Malini Shankar.




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Clearance revoked, but you can still have the forest land!


A CAG audit report finds that despite the revocation of clearance for forest land diverted to a public sector power company, the land continues to be used by them. Himanshu Upadhyaya details this and other findings, which show thegloomy picture of forest governance in West Bengal.




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Will selective plans for the Ganga work?


Rejuvenation of the Ganga has purportedly grabbed a big share of the new government’s focus, but would plans ignoring the upper Ganga basin really be effective? Shripad Dharmadhikary discusses the findings of an expert body that could be crucial to the agenda.




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Good food from dry land


Across 20 villages of Bankura and Birbhum districts in West Bengal, 800 families are learning to farm dry land anew in a sustainable manner, resulting in increased income, better health and nutritional outcomes, and food security. Ajitha Menon reports from Bankura.




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What binds every family in this Kerala Panchayat


The thrust on chemical-free cultivation of vegetables that started as an experiment in the 90s has now evolved into a culture in Kerala’s Kanjikkuzhi Gram Panchayat. P N Venugopal traces the growth and success of this initiative so far.




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Basmati beset by debate and delay


More than a year after the application for recognising Basmati as a GI was filed, there is still no way to be certain if the grain on our plates is the real thing. As a result, a lot of the rice packed and sold in Haryana is called basmati, and traders in other countries too freely use the name. Varupi Jain reports.




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G20: The 'trillion' dollar magic trick


To great fanfare, the G20 announced a US $1.1 trillion global package, which will actually deliver less than half that amount in new or guaranteed resources. Meanwhile issues of fundamental economic reform were left off the agenda.




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Hydropower in the land of Gross National Happiness


The immense untapped potential of hydropower generation in Bhutan has led to several major projects in the offing, with varying degrees of Indian involvement. However, Shripad Dharmadhikary finds a steady rise in voices questioning their impact on the Himalayan environment.




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Is lower inflation here to stay?


Most measures of inflation over the last couple of months point to an encouraging downward movement in price indices; Shambhu Ghatak deconstructs these measures and quotes observations of the RBI to show why it may still be premature to take low inflation for granted.




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Renew lapsed farmers' insurance policies


Calls for the renewal of hundreds of thousands of lapsed insurance policies have begun, reports P Sainath.




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The class war in Gurgaon


The scenes from Gurgaon gave us more than just a picture of one labour protest, police brutality or corporate tyranny. It presented us a microcosm of the new and old Indias. Different rules and realities for different classes of society, says P Sainath.




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A much larger house on fire


About the time 50 Dalit houses were set ablaze in Gohana, the country marked 50 years of a law giving effect to the Constitution's abolition of untouchability. As if to rub it in, 25 more Dalit homes were torched the same week in Akola, Maharashtra, writes P Sainath.




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Look to helpline, land in jail


Those turning to the Government 'helpline' in Mahbubnagar, Andhra Pradesh, learn the hard way what happens when the little farmer of the countryside runs into the large apparatus of the state. P Sainath reports on a farmer's near-death brush with the government's promise of relief.