As a special secretary with the department of revenue, Rashmi Verma oversees developments related to goods and services tax (GST). In an interaction with Pratap Vikram Singh, she explains how GST and IT can create a system to curb tax evasion.
There has been abundant criticism following the budgetary cuts imposed on social sector programmes in this year’s budget, with socialist evangelists terming them as an attack on the welfare state. Understandable, because we continue to measure our commitment to the welfare state in terms of budgetary allocations and expenditures, and not on proper utilisation and outcomes. To what extent
Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) leader Chirag Paswan is confident that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will win elections in Bihar. Speaking to Sweta Ranjan, Chirag said that he finds the Nitish-Lalu alliance a strange combo. He also believes that chief m
In July 2013, the supreme court directed the election commission to frame guidelines on the contents of manifestos after noting that freebies announced by political parties shake “the root of free and fair elections”. Though guidelines have now been put in place, the state of affairs virtually remain the same with parties in fray continuing to promise freebies with scope for violati
In the second decade of 21st century, the world’s largest democracy which is also a secular country witnessed a case of lynching over rumours. A mob of locals beat 50-year-old Mohammad Akhlaq to death and severely injured his 22-year-old son upon hearing rumours that the family was eating beef. The killing of Akhlaq in Bisara village of Dadri, 45 km from Delhi, can be considered a turning
In the present era of slowing aggregate demand and increasing market uncertainties, regional economic cooperation among countries provide some sort of relief to them. Currently, there are three mega ‘regionals’ under negotiation: the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership of the Asia and the Pacific (RCEP), the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Trans-Atlantic Trade and In
In 2013, when Governance Now caught up with Angus Deaton during one of his Delhi visits, he was asked if he regretted not winning the Nobel Prize in 2012, as he had been widely expected to. He said he was rather “relieved”. Today, he has finally secured the honour. Here we reproduce the interview:
With the Bihar elections round the corner, there is animated debate about its probable outcome. These elections will be an acid test for the leadership of the Janata Dal (United) or JD(U), and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). Nitish Kumar, the leader of JD(U), faces multiple problems of anti-incumbency, credibility, organisational acumen and leadership after ruling for 10 years. While Lalu Prasa
Setting a new trend of the portrayal of a strong female protagonist in Hindi films, Vidya Balan has won various awards including one national award, five Filmfare, five Screen awards and the Padma Shri in 2014. Journeying from TV serial Hum Paanch to critically acclaimed films like Dirty Picture and Kahaani, Vidya has established herself as a leading actor of Bollywood. Bes
Haryana is defending its law that bars illiterates and school dropouts from contesting panchayat elections. While the state government is trumpeting the law as a means to guarantee an ‘educated’ leadership to ensure good governance at the panchayat level, the law raises fears of aggravating the challenges inherent to Indian democracy. At a time when reservation is sti
Salil Bhatt is an Indian classical musician born in a family that has a 500-year-old legacy in music. He represents the tenth generation of famous Bhatt lineage and is the son of renowned Mohan Veena player, Grammy awardee Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt. Like his father who created Mohan Veena, Salil has created the Satvik Veena for which received several accolades. He
A sizeable chunk of Syria’s population has left the country and nearly half of its territory under the control of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL aka ISIS or IS) and other terrorist groups. How does Syria look at the crisis? This is the biggest catastrophe of 21st century for Syrian culture, in terms of human development and natural heritage.
Joachim Ruecker is the current president of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). Appointed in January this year, he is the first German diplomat to hold the office. Ruecker has held various positions in the federal foreign office in Bonn and German diplomatic missions. He has been the special representative of the secretary general at the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kos
The picture of cracked and burnt-out feet, with a missing toe, on the cover of Harsh Mander’s new book ‘Looking Away: Inequality, Prejudice in New India’, does one thing convincingly: it mocks the ‘invisible hand’. Radha, a girl probably
Since 2008 he has been instrumental in driving key Targus products and partnerships with major customers worldwide. Currently Mike Sexton leads the global product management and marketing and is primarily responsible for driving the company’s power products and managing B2B and OEM alliance. In an interview with Shubhendu Parth, he elaborates on how w
Undeniably, Gandhi had a moral force unparalleled in recent times. For comparable examples of moral greatness, people often go back by centuries – to Jesus Christ and similar names. The crucial difference, however, is that nearly all great religious figures and spiritual teachers come with some supernatural element; grace from above and so on, which granted them enlightenment. They were n
He has switched sides many a time. From being an ally of the BJP to an adversary in the past, today Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan is a minister in the BJP-led government at the centre. As his home state Bihar goes to the polls, the BJP sees in him a key ally who can change its fortunes. A veteran of many electoral battles, 69-year-old Paswan today swears
The Patel community’s agitation demanding OBC status has brought life to a standstill across Gujarat. To understand the genesis and implications of this agitation, Ashish Mehta talked to Achyut Yagnik, a leading expert on Gujarat society and honorary secretary of the Ahmedabad-based NGO ‘SETU: Centre for Social Knowledge and Action’. Excer
The memories of the day are still intact in my mind when my brother Subhash sacrificed his savings to pay my school fees. Instead of buying shoes, he wore casual slippers in the scorching summer heat. Whenever I saw him in his slippers, it would remind me of his sacrifice he made for my studies. This was when I had decided not to let his sacrifice go in vain. Sometimes I used to ponder over our
The present refugee crisis in Europe is the biggest since World War II. As the conflict in Syria digs deeper in its fifth year with no political solution on the horizon, desperate Syrians are undertaking perilous journeys across the Mediterranean sea to reach Greece and Turkey, through Former Yugoslav Republic (FYR) of Macedonia and Serbia, crossing Hungary and then finally reaching EU&rsqu
