At a two-day international seminar on "Saving Doha and delivering on development" that concluded at New Delhi on 13 March, India's Commerce Minister Kamal Nath provided ample evidence of India's willingness to go along with the rich and industrialised countries. The writing is on the wall, says Devinder Sharma.

It is widely accepted that agricultural subsidies in developed nations are distorting global agriculture trade. And yet, Purdue University and the World Bank are cleverly using economic models and simulated 'welfare gains' to push for market access in developing nations. Therein lies a danger, says Devinder Sharma.

A range of criticisms raised at a recent seminar in Mumbai are a sufficient indication of the extent to which SEZs are being pushed as a government policy without any public consultation on their pros and cons. The seminar, on SEZs and their implications for urban planning, was held at the Rachana Sansad School of Architecture. Darryl D'Monte reports.

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.

The country's latest Geographical Indication certificate offers some new hope - of putting the sheen and colour back in a vital piece of Indian heritage, and livelihoods linked to it. Puja Awasthi reports.

Three and half decades after a scientist demonstrated the idea, chappals made with areca leaf sheaths have hit the market from Kerala. Shrikrishna D writes about the early success and challenges.

In search of new funds to keep the growth story alive, the Centre opens the doors to foreign investment a little further.

It is far from clear if capital exports out of India are good for India. What is apparent, from their enthusiasm, is that Indian companies believe it is good for them. Kannan Kasturi reports.

India's current account deficit reached alarming levels in the year 2012-13. Kannan Kasturi provides a historical context and lucid explanation of the phenomenon and rues the government's shocking lack of action.

The drying up of the dollar and the resultant plummet of the rupee reflects on the government's flawed economic strategy. Shyam Sekhar draws upon the famous business fable Who Moved My Cheese? to show the kind of behaviour and actions that could resolve the crisis now.

The Indian government has stopped short of imposing effective controls on gold imports despite the soaring current account deficit and its concomitant ills. Kannan Kasturi examines recent trends in gold demand to see if the government's rationale behind the soft policy holds good.

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.

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.

The government’s thrust on ‘ease of doing business’ and ‘Make in India’ rests significantly on the premise of attracting foreign capital into manufacturing. Kannan Kasturi tracks data on FDI inflows to see whether it indicates true potential to boost the sector and job creation.

The ruling by the World Trade Organisation (WTO)’s dispute settlement body (DSB) in a complaint filed by USA against elements of India’s solar mission is again in the news. Shalini Bhutani helps to piece together the sequence of events and points out how the global trade architecture keeps domestic laws and policies under intense scrutiny.

The complex contractor-maistry system, the devastation of agriculture, an ineffective food-for-work programme, debt and debilitating mass migrions - these are an explosive mix. P Sainath continues his journey with the migrant exodus from Mahbubnagar
Part I : The bus to Mumbai

June 2003 - The bus we're on is one of about 34 leaving the Mahbubnagar region direct for Mumbai each week. That's against just about one a week, a decade ago. People are leaving in droves.

Drought? Mahbubnagar does have a problem. Quite a bit of that, though, is about the control, distribution and use of water. At 634 mm, the average rainfall of the last 14 years here is close to 30 mm above normal. Those, at least, are the official numbers. There have been deficit years. And a couple of truly awful ones -- as in a lot of other districts. This year, District Collector Madhusudhan Rao says, "the deficit is eight per cent so far". Unpleasant, but not crushing.

P Sainath reports on the serious problem of rural hunger in Andhra Pradesh, and the politics of free lunches.
Part II : Hi-tech, low nutrition

P Sainath reports on the serious problem of rural hunger in Andhra Pradesh, and the politics of free lunches.
Part I : A gruel-ing season

The worse things have become in Anantapur district, the more fancy cars have shown up in town. Drought, says P Sainath, is the organised plunder of the poor.

Didn't parliament condemn this war? Then why do we need a new consensus on sending troops to Iraq, asks P Sainath, remembering similar sacrifices of Indian lives for the British empire.

P Sainath makes the case for sustainable rhetoric.

The India Shining advertisement campaign is a government-media joint venture, says P Sainath.

The media have decided that 70 per cent of the population does not make news. The electorate has decided otherwise. P Sainath contrasts expectations before the elections with actual outcomes, and finds plenty that should have been always evident.

P Sainath on the fault lines in Andhra that led to the ouster of the Chandrababu Naidu led Telugu Desam Party.

Even allowing for under-valuation, many candidates are worth crores officially. P Sainath looks through election candidates' disclosures in Andhra Pradesh.

P Sainath.

P Sainath.

Almost every sector failed the Andhra Pradesh farmer - the Government, the political class, intellectuals, planners, human rights groups, a once-activist judiciary and the media, says P Sainath.

On most indicators, Chandrababu Naidu ran the worst performing state in the south of India for nearly 10 years. Yet the more damage he did, the more his media standing grew, says P Sainath.

In Andhra Pradesh, the Naidu government's Janmabhoomi model of development gutted the panchayats and curbed local democracy. Hence, the panchayats have proved totally ineffective during the agrarian crisis, reports P Sainath.

P Sainath.

P Sainath.

Superstition, the occult, God, government and technology have all been pressed into service in Anantapur's desperate search for water. P Sainath continues his series on farmer suicides.

Long before the drought bit deep, Anantapur was already in trouble. The close links between workers, farming and industry were broken by the new policies of the 1990s. P Sainath continues his series on farmer suicides in Andhra.

Suicides amongst their own numbers are not the only way women farmers are hit by the ongoing crisis. Suicides by their husbands leave many in a predatory world. P Sainath continues his series on farmer suicides in Andhra.

As farming floundered, many families came to the towns. The men sought work as auto drivers or daily wage labour. Often without success. In this struggle against poverty, the stress on their wives was enormous. P Sainath continues his series on farmer suicides in Andhra.

For many in Andhra Pradesh's agrarian crisis, even death is not the end of the trouble. Instead, it is the beginning of a new burden for the families of the survivors. P Sainath continues his series on farmer suicides in Andhra.

The ongoing agrarian crisis has had a telling impact, causing the lapse of insurance policies of farmers. P Sainath reports.

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

P Sainath finds that the declining fortune and health of the religious establishment in Kerala's Wayanad region mirrors what is happening to the parishioners themselves.

It's no longer just landless labourers on the bus to Kutta. Many masons and carpenters are also crossing the border into Karnataka in search of work, spurred on by the collapse of employment in Wayanad. P Sainath continues his series on the agrarian crisis in Wayanad.

Church income has fallen sharply as the laity have gone into debt in Wayanad. But the larger reality is also more complex. While the church does reflect the pain of its farmer base, it is also, in some cases, a source of at least a few of the dues that worry them, notes P Sainath.

Prior to 1995, KSRTC did not have a single bus on this route, but nowadays there are 24 trips between Manathavady in Wayanad and Kutta in Kodagu, Karnataka. By the second stop on the journey, there is not a seat vacant. P Sainath continues his series on the agrarian crisis in Wayanad.

Toddy is legal in Kerala, while arrack is banned. Also, while a litre of toddy costs Rs. 30, a sachet of arrack goes for Rs. 11. As the farm crisis sees thousands of migrants crossing over into Karnataka, arrack shops right on the border are booming. P Sainath continues his series on the agrarian crisis in Wayanad.

Two processes have hit Wayanad. One is the policy-driven commercialisation of education. And the second is the collapse of Wayanad's economy. For the first time in decades in this education-proud state thousands of students are dropping out of college and school. P Sainath continues his series on the agrarian crisis in Wayanad.

The elite wants a society geared to deal with rare disasters but shows no urgency at all when it comes to the destruction of the livelihoods of millions by policy and human agency. P Sainath turns our consciences towards Mumbai's demolitions of tens of thousands of the homes of slum-dwellers.

Imports of pepper from Sri Lanka, including large quantities that are simply routed through that country but not actually produced there, have devastated farmers in Wayanad, home of the world's best pepper. P Sainath continues his series on the agrarian crisis in this region.

"It is time for my daughter to get married but where's the money? We ran a teashop for a long time. That folded as people had no more to spend." P Sainath finds that as the agrarian crisis has deepened in Wayanad, many people are now simply unable to afford weddings.

Going back on its promise made in the Common Minimum Programme, the UPA government has put Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. on the carving table, allegedly to fund health and education. But the proceeds from the proposed sale of equity in BHEL are a fraction of what could be raised by different, less repulsive means, says P Sainath.

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.