The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has predicted a bleak year for employment in 2011, the third consecutive one marred thus, despite a the global economic recovery. The ILO in a report says that the South Asia has the highest volume of vulnerable employment among all regions in the world, at 78.5 percent of total employment in 2009. India and China
The top bestseller in France for a while is not thriller, not a romance, not a new novel by a literary superstar. It’s a slim volume (32 pages), titled “Indignez-Vous!” (roughly translated as ‘Be Indignant!’ but also something like ‘Protest!’ or ‘Cry Out’) by Stéphane Hessel. The crux of his essay is that the French people have forgot
Along with the spread of awareness about the Right to Information (RTI) Act, the threat on those using the law to expose corruption has also increased. Every time an RTI applicant seeks information which has the potential to unearth the wrongdoings of influential people, he or she is at risk. In some cases, the threat remains limited to phone calls and in others, it cost th
Dust kicked up from pounding paws racing across the Indian grasslands, a flash of spots and the white of a tail as a large cat speeds past, the thrill of chasing leaping blackbuck across fields of gold; all images closely linked to Indian royal heritage. Coursing cheetahs are as much a part of the rich tapestry of Indian Mughal art and culture as their architecture, which
Booming economies apart, India and South Africa have rampant corruption in common. While, in India, the UPA coalition and stooges have a host of scams to their shame, the African National Congress (ANC) is being widely pilloried for being headed by Jacob Zuma, a man who should have been tried for 700-odd charges of alleged corruption. In 2009, Zuma got all of these charges dropped
The recent cabinet reshuffle at the Centre, much-hyped and long-awaited, can be characterized by twin traits of adhocism and eyewash. Corruption, bad governance and impending assembly elections in five states are said to be the key drivers behind the reshuffle. Although prime minister Manmohan Singh undertook as many as 37 changes in the portfolios of his ministers and inducted three ne
At a symposium on `Evidence to action for reducing maternal and newborn mortality` at AIIMS recently, former health secretary Sujatha Rao marked her attendance, perhaps her first after retirement. After attentively listening to all speakers, including some heads of department at AIIMS and other dignitaries, it was her turn to take the dais. The gyneco
Ahead of the cabinet reshuffle, the rural development minister CP Joshi erred in judgment and erred big time, thus clearing the path of his own exit from the coveted, flush-with-funds ministry. He should have known that he was not just ignoring the advice of the National Advisory Council (NAC) but that of the Congress supremo Sonia Gandhi.
India has the fifteenth-highest flow of slush funds among developing nations, according to a report released by a Washington DC think tank, Global Financial Integrity (GFI). Neighbouring China earns the ignominy of being ranked first. GFI, a research and advocacy organisation, pins India`s losses due to outflow of illicit liquidity at $104.1 billion during the period 2000-2008, a period when In
There has been a tremendous upsurge of social revulsion in the country about corruption. People wonder why the conscience of so-called leaders is not troubled by their betrayal of public trust. Corruption seems to be like a vaccine; once you learn to live with a small dose, a bigger dose becomes easier to live with. More and more people seem to have been immunised by this vaccine. How have cult
The defining characteristic of an authoritarian state is the unchecked power of the executive. Absence of opposition, rule of law, independent judiciary, freedom of press, civil liberties are all outcomes of unaccountable executive power, not the determinants. In India, checks to executive power are provided by partial separation of legislative power and an independent judiciary. However these
Lavasa corporation limited (LCL) cannot undertake any construction activity, the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) has said in a report submitted to the Bombay high court. In a 74-page report submitted on Monday, MoEF has said that the construction by LCL is ‘unauthorised, in violation of the three environmental impact assessment (EIA) notifications and is also environmentally da
Lavasa corporation limited (LCL) cannot undertake any construction activity, the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) has said in a report submitted to the Bombay high court. In a 74-page report submitted on Monday, MoEF has said that the construction by LCL is ‘unauthorised, in violation of the three environmental impact assessment (EIA) notifications and is also environmentally da
Human resource development minister Kapil Sibal is a man on the mission. Apart from bringing a change in the state of education, he also aims to increase enrolment of children in schools. And it seems it is already working. The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2010, prepared by the NGO Pratham and published last week, shows an increase in school enrolment figures. But it also highlights
The other day I was in the office of Delhi’s lieutenant governor (LG). I was talking to an officer – one of the most honest and efficient in the current lot serving the Delhi government – about the loopholes in the administrative mechanism and the initiatives LG has taken to fix the same. The focus of the talk shifted to the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
Even after five years in schools, close to half of children in class five are not even at the level expected of them after two years in school. Close to 50 percent of class five children could not read a class two level text, says annual report on the state of education in the country. The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2010, prepared by the NGO Pratham, conducted surve
Why is India not able to take care of its poor like most other countries who are neither great democracies nor economic powers or the military power that we boast of? The new economic policy of liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation has done wonders for the moneyed class but for the vast majority of poor, now intended to be covered under
Surendra Mohan, socialist thinker and leader, was a unique repository of political history and knowledge. He was a keen observer of the gradual distortions that have seized contemporary politics. What made him unique was that he was unsparing in exposing the hypocrisy and chicanery of his old socialist colleagues when it came to the crunch. On December 16, I met him to get his
