The Climate Finance Shortfall
Nov 28th 2023. C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh

The focus on fossil fuel phase out and net zero target dates is geared to diverting attention from the responsibility of developed countries to provide higher climate finance flows to developing countries.

The Destruction of Universities
Aug 28th 2023, Prabhat Patnaik

When BJP rule in the country is dead and gone, a good deal of the damage it has caused to the Indian society, polity and economy will no doubt be reversed. But there are at least two areas where such reversal will be difficult.

The Terrible Human Costs of Debt Service
Jul 25th 2023. C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh

Without urgent and effective action on debt relief, fiscal pressures of debt service will cause low and middle income countries to regress on important social and economic indicators.

The Monetary Policy fallout for Developing Countrie
Nov 15th 2022. C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh

Coping with the adverse fallout of tighter monetary policy in the advanced economies will require developing country governments to shift from openness that increases their own vulnerability to a more creative and flexible approach that provides greater policy autonomy.

Economics and Dishonesty
Nov 14th 2022, Prabhat Patnaik

Economics is a subject where the ruling classes are forever trying to promote ideologically-motivated explanations in lieu of scientific ones. These explanations of course can be, and have been, fitted into an integrated totality of an alternative non-scientific theoretical structure that Marx had called "vulgar economy" as distinct from classical political economy.

Social Sciences and the Colonised Mind
Jan 24th 2022, Prabhat Patnaik

A crucial component of the imperialist system is the colonisation of third world minds. It incapacitates critical thinking on how to solve social problems. A critical component of this colonisation is a narrative about social development that insulates colonialism or imperialism as causal factors.

The Feminist Building-blocks of a Just, Sustainable Economy
Nov 19th 2021, Jayati Ghosh

UN Women has produced a clear and pervasive blueprint on the Feminist Plan for Sustainability and Social Justice, which puts much-needed flesh on the bare bones of a feminist approach to the economy, relevant to the contemporary world. Now the task is to do it.

The Interlinkages between Paid and Unpaid Labour: A homage to Krishna Bharadwaj
Aug 26th 2021. Jayati Ghosh

The gendered division of labour in India creates much greater involvement in unpaid labour for women, which in turn has pervasive implications for their involvement in paid work. Indeed, the interlinkage between the two is so profound that it is impossible to understand trends in one without assessing trends in the other.

The Challenge of LDC Debt
Feb 9th 2021, C.P. Chandrasekhar

A challenge set by the Covid-19-induced economic crisis that would be difficult to address is the external debt crisis engulfing developing countries. While the G-20 with its Debt Service Suspension Initiative appeared to recognise the problem, the evidence indicates that the international community is unwilling to do what is needed.

Billionaires and the Pandemic
Oct 26th 2020, Prabhat Patnaik

The pandemic, just as any other crisis, has become a mechanism for the centralisation of capital arising from the inability of small wealth-holders to face stock-price collapses that the billionaires can face and the pooling together of vast masses of small capitals into a few large ones.

India's Abysmal Healthcare System
Jul 6th 2020, Prabhat Patnaik

Amidst a dreadful pandemic, the medical staff of several government facilities are facing salary cut. As healthcare gets more privatized, the State's actions seem to compound the rapid increase in absolute poverty by keeping public health expenditure abysmally low.

Corona Pandemic, Sudden Visibility of Migrant Workers and the Indian Economy 
Jul 6th 2020. Byasdeb Dasgupta

In a three-dimensional crisis, of migrants, of pandemic and of the Indian Economy, the sudden visibiliy of migrants is due to the threat they pose to public health. What remains to be seen is whether the voice of the most vulnerable section will be heard or not.

India’s Response to Covid-19 has been Sadistic
Jun 12th 2020, Jayati Ghosh

Prof. Jayati Ghosh talks with Number13 about India’s response to the pandemic and its myriad impacts on society. It is not Covid-19 itself, but the highly classist government responses which have destroyed the economy, employment and livelihood of the country.

Pandemic and the Reverse Migration of Labour in India
Jun 8th 2020, Sunanda Sen

An account of hunger and destitution currently experienced by the mass of out-migrants in urban pockets, provide clear indications of a minimalist state in the process. Closer alliance of big capital and the ruling state further weaken the prevailing labour laws under the false pretext of attracting finance.

COVID-19 Lockdown: Impact on agriculture 
May 21st 2020. Vikas Rawal and Manish Kumar

Disruptions caused by the lockdown have resulted in considerable additional economic burden on farmers because of higher costs, increased debt burden, inability to sell the produce at reasonable prices and crop losses. Yet the government’s response to such agricultural distress has been nothing short of a mockery till now.

Covid-19 Crisis calls for Universal Delivery of Food and Cash Transfers by the State
Apr 27th 2020, Jayati Ghosh, Prabhat Patnaik and Harsh Mander

Food and livelihood support must be provided to those who have been forced to bear the burden of the Covid-19 lockdown - and the Centre can easily afford it. Excuses based on public finances will not wash.

What Must India do now to address the Coronavirus Crisis
Apr 27th 2020, Dipa Sinha, Prasenjit Bose and Rohit

Varied intensity of new cases across states warrants a calibrated and state-specific lockdown exit strategy. Owing to disruption in every sector the country needs a doubling-down on food and cash transfers and an overhaul of fiscal and monetary strategy.

Agricultural Supply Chains during the COVID-19 Lockdown: A study of market arrivals of seven key food commodities in India
Apr 22nd 2020, Vikas Rawal and Ankur Verma

This article presents quantitative evidence from 1331 mandis to show that, over the first three weeks of the COVID-19 lockdown, a large number of agricultural markets were not operational, and in those markets that were operational, arrivals of key agricultural commodities fell very sharply. A disruption of 21 days in being able to sell their crops would have resulted in massive losses to farmers, in particular, to producers of perishable crops.

The Making of a Tragedy
Apr 8th 2020, Prabhat Patnaik

With no mechanisms in place to deal with the problem of migrant labourers and delivery issues, Modi government has almost made sure that even its paltry ration scheme does not reach the neediest.

Lessons from the Coronavirus: The socialization of care work is not "just" a women's issue
Apr 7th 2020, Smriti Rao

Images of migrants walking hundreds of kilometers to return home are showing the extent of the government’s indifference to the lives of millions. The almost complete privatization of social reproduction in India has left its legacy in the large-scale malnourishment that makes our population uniquely vulnerable to the coronavirus.

A Niggardly Response to an Extraordinary Crisis
Mar 30th 2020, C.P. Chandrasekhar

The relief package announced by the Finance Minister is a niggardly response to an unprecedented health, economic, and humanitarian crisis, severely affecting both demand and supply. The Centre does not seem interested in moving much beyond the lockdown.

Some Basic Lessons from the Pandemic
Mar 23rd 2020, Prabhat Patnaik

It is clear from the current pandemic that the tenets of neo-liberalism must be reversed to introduce a comprehensive public healthcare system and a universal public distribution system; otherwise several precious lives will be lost.

The Budget's Blurred Social Sector Vision
Feb 3rd 2020, Dipa Sinha

Low allocations and specific policy statements in Budget 2020 point to greater privatisation and withdrawal of the state. The government fails to deliver for the country's poor and marginalized, a fact reflected clearly in reduced Revised Estimates across the board.

India is failing her Young Women even in Terms of Work 
Dec 31st 2019, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh

Labour force and work participation rates are low among young women across India, but the 2017-18 labour force survey shows that rates in almost all states have fallen even further, pointing to particularly adverse women labour market conditions.

For a System of Free Higher Education
Dec 10th 2019, Prabhat Patnaik

To develop 'organic intellectuals" of a free India, higher education needs to be made completely free. But unless the tendency to appease the rich in the name of growth and to commoditise education are overcome, this seems like a distant dream.

Claims versus Reality: Who benefits from government funded health insurance?
Dec 5th 2019, Ankur Verma

Data from the recent survey show that health insurance coverage in India has not expanded at all between 2014 and 2018. Moreover, the benefits of health insurance disproportionately accrue to relatively richer households while the poor are left high and dry.

Claims versus Reality: Who Benefited from PM Ujjwala Yojana?
Nov 27th 2019, Dechen Dolma

Recently released NSS data and administrative data on LPG connections show that most LPG connections provided under the PMUY may not have reached intended beneficiaries. Survey data confirms that half of the rural households continue to use firewood, chips, crop residue and dung cakes as the main fuel.

Claim versus Reality: Has India Become Open Defecation Free?
Nov 27th 2019, Suvidya Patel

The NSS Report No 584, based on the 76th Round survey, calls the bluff peddled by the government on the achievements of Swachh Bharat Mission. In 2018, when the government was claiming that only 1.7 per cent rural households did not have latrines, the survey shows that it as many as 28.7 per cent.

India's Rank on the Global Hunger Index
Oct 28th 2019, Prabhat Patnaik

"Global Hunger Index 2019 unambiguously concludes that India ranks lowest among all South Asian countries and that there has been an alarming increase in child "wasting". The government's callous approach to this has its roots in the institutionalized inequality of the Indian caste system."

Economics and Imperialism
May 31st, 2019, Prabhat Patnaik

The real intent of mainstream economics is to serve as a means of camouflaging imperialism. Prabhat Patnaik illustrates this with the examples of growth and trade theories.

Finance and Growth under Neo-liberalism
May 14th, 2019, Prabhat Patnaik

Prabhat Patnaik explains that neo-liberal capitalism suffers from an inherent tendency towards stagnation because it no longer has the instruments used earlier to avoid slipping into recession and stagnation.

Why is South Asia Performing so Badly on the SDGs? 
Mar 27th 2019, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh

High inequality in the South Asian region is a crucial factor responsible for the region's poor performance on the SDGs.

Social Responsibility of Intellectuals in Building Counter-Hegemonies 
Feb 4th 2019, Issa Shivji

In a period of upsurge of fascism, narrow nationalism and parochialism, Issa Shivji calls for the social responsibility of intellectuals to construct a counter-hegemonic project that would resonate with the lives of the vast majority.

Capitalism's Discourse on "Development"
Jul 30th 2018, Prabhat Patnaik
Capitalism cannot overcome unemployment and poverty in the third world countries because of its inherent tendency to generate greater technological progress, which increases labor productivity and thereby slows down the employment generation process. Because of growing labor reserves, real wages remain at subsistence level, but since labor productivity would be growing, the share of surplus would be increasing. Therefore capitalism produces growth at one pole and aggravates poverty at another.
The Proposed Abolition of the UGC
Jul 9th 2018, Prabhat Patnaik
The Modi government is bringing in legislation to abolish the University Grants Commission and replace it with Higher Education Commission of India. The composition of the HECI and the advisory council along with the fact that funds will be provided by the HRD ministry is a strong indicator of political interference in the country’s academic life.
Curbing Child Rape: Are we barking up the wrong tree?
May 11th 2018, Anamitra Roychowdhury
Raising the quantum of punishment in the face of public outrage will not work without fund allocation to improve police-civilian ratio and building judicial infrastructure.
Widowhood in India
Oct 11th 2017, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh
Public policy has largely ignored specific problems of widows in India. And given their numbers, this exclusion can prove costly for society in general.
Development for Whom?
Jun 22nd 2017, Jayati Ghosh
Calls for a new development paradigm grow louder each day, especially in rapidly growing countries like India. Award-winning development economist Jayati Ghosh explores prospects for such a new model of equitable and sustainable development with Allen White, Senior Fellow at the Tellus Institute.
The Post-1991 Growth Story
Jul 29th 2016, C.P. Chandrasekhar
Economic growth post liberalization has been riding on a credit bubble. Neither has it made the manufacturing or exports sector robust, nor has delivered any benefits to those steeped in poverty and deprivation.
A Picture of Inequality
May 10th 2016, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh
The government's decision to release income class-wise details on tax returns allows an assessment of the extent of inequality in the distribution of income among tax payers.
On Data and Decision-making
Apr 13th 2016, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh
Wide differences in official data based on series with different base years or from alternative sources lead to questions about their relevance for decision making.
How much has Global Economic Power Really Shifted?
Mar 31st 2016, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh
This article analyses the significance of shift in global economic power from the North to the South and what exactly it means for the countries in developing Asia like India.
Understanding "Secular Stagnation"
Oct 15th 2015, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh
This article discusses the issue of the "new normal" of low or stagnating output growth that the analysts and reports of international organisations are talking about.
India: The global laggard in meeting the MDGs
Sep 11th 2014, Jayati Ghosh
Most of the eight Millennium Development Goals given by the UN will not be achieved due to lack of progress in Sub Saharan Africa and South Asia, particularly in India.
The State and Indian Planning
Sep 9th 2014, C.P. Chandrasekhar
Though the Planning Commission faltered in residual developmental role, but instead of reforming it the scrapping indicates towards systematic dismantling of checks and balances.
Banking with a Difference
Aug 12th 2014, C.P. Chandrasekhar
Democratic forces in BRICS and other countries have to ensure that the BRICS bank acts differently from existing development banks to be a true alternative as expected.
UPA-2 and Welfare Schemes
May 29th 2014, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh
Contrary to the argument that UPA-2 wasted too much money on "populist" schemes, it actually neglected and spent less on these important welfare initiatives than UPA-1.
Democracy, Neoliberalism and Inclusiveness
Nov 26th 2013, C.P. Chandrasekhar
A strategy of inclusive development is required instead of the rhetorical ''inclusive growth'' propagated by two main political parties in the run-up of next general election.
Credit and Capital Formation in Agriculture: A growing disconnect
Nov 21st 2013, Pallavi Chavan
Capital formation in agriculture in recent past suffered due to overemphasis on short-term and indirect credit, but this may prove to be costly for future sectoral growth.
Goliath's Nasty Ways: Chevron and the people of the Amazon
Nov 14th 2013, Jayati Ghosh
In the Ecuador environment damage case, Chevron’s act of influencing the verdict in a counter-suit filed in the US shows the universal lack of accountability in global firms.
India's Informal Economy
Oct 29th 2013, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh
India's large informal sector's extreme backwardness makes the quality of growth poor. Existing vague definitions also do not help in understanding its potential.
Tripura's Tryst with Literacy
Oct 24th 2013, Subhanil Chowdhury and Gorky Chakraborty
While all kinds of development model are debated furiously, the small state of Tripura is making rapid strides in improving literacy and other development indicators.
Making Growth Deliver Exports – Not the other way around
Sep 18th 2013, Jayati Ghosh
With the North reducing import dependency, the neo-liberal export led growth model must be replaced by raising domestic demand and industrialisation in the South.
Affordable Medicine: A big step forward
Apr 27th 2012, C.P. Chandrasekhar
The recent judgement by India's Controller of Patents granting Compulsory License to an Indian pharmaceutical company for the production of a cancer drug, the patent for which is held by German pharmaceuticals and chemicals giant Bayer, is not just historic but path breaking.
Factor Shares in the Indian Economy
Apr 17th 2012, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh
The functional distribution of national income is relatively ignored by researchers interested in income distribution in India. An analysis of CSO's data on factor shares in the past three decades shows that the the period of most rapid acceleration of growth was also the period of the sharpest fall in the share of the unorganised sector in GDP. Although this change is to be welcomed, the concern is that it has not been accompanied by any increase in the organised sector's share in total employment.
Unique Identity, Leakages and Development
Dec 16th 2010, Jayati Ghosh
The latest initiative of the Government of India, the UID project, apparently appears to have many advantages for ordinary citizens, especially the poor. But there is a fundamental mistake in presuming that this will do away with corruption and leakages, because it misses out the fact that it is the power relations that enable and assist the pattern of corruption in India. Also the project can lead to an invasion of basic privacy and undesirable monitoring by the state.
Measuring Progress
Sep 30th 2009, Jayati Ghosh
The limitations of GDP and HDI that are used as standard measurements of growth and development might have prompted President Nicolas Sarkozy to set up a commission to look into alternative ways of measuring economic and social progress. However, the report of the commission, instead of making much headway, has added to the existing debate, thereby leaving some of the most crucial questions unanswered.
Assessing the Recent West Bengal Experience
Mar 20th 2009, Jayati Ghosh
A report prepared by Indicus Analytics on the economic development of West Bengal tries to portray a dismal performance of the state with regard to growth, employment, poverty reduction, health etc. The article tries to question the findings of the report and argues that in many counts West Bengal has performed much better than the national average.
Health Imbalances
Mar 5th 2009, Jayati Ghosh
While India has one of the worst health indicators in the world, there is a paucity of ideas and initiatives to take care of the problem of health. The recent Report of the Independent Commission on Development and Health in India shows the imbalances with regard to health indicators in the country and makes important recommendations to fix the ailing public health system.
Where have all the footpaths gone?
Feb 3rd 2009, Jayati Ghosh
The author puts forward a new definition of underdevelopment in terms of lack of amenities for pedestrians in towns and cities. Although the problems of urban slums have been discussed in the context of rapid urbanisation, the importance of having safe, continuous and usable walking spaces, which are almost lacking in many urban sprawls across the developing world, seems to be missed out.
The Loss of Development Finance
Oct 23rd 2008, Jayati Ghosh
The financial tsunami that is now threatening to engulf many developing countries as well, makes all the more clear the dangers posed by unregulated financial markets. As is known, in addition to creating the conditions for greater fragility, financial liberalisation generates a bias towards deflationary macroeconomic policies and forces the state to adopt a deflationary stance to appease financial interests. In fact, financial liberalisation in developing countries has even worse consequences, because it can retard or even reverse the development.
Recent Growth in West Bengal
May 12th 2008, C.P. Chandrasekhar & Jayati Ghosh
The state of West Bengal has been the focus of national discussion because of the various implications of its proposed industrialisation policy. In this article the authors consider the background to this policy by analysing the most recent available evidence on growth trends in West Bengal.
Digital Dumps: A Growing Threat for Developing Countries
Mar 17th 2008, Jayati Ghosh

The management of huge and growing quantities of electronic waste may emerge as one of the more important environmental problems of developing countries in the near future. The problems arise from the very significant health and environmental hazards associated with e-waste. As usual, this impact is worse in developing countries, where people often live in close proximity to dumps or landfills of untreated e-waste.

Unravelling India's Growth Transition
Nov 2nd 2007, C.P. Chandrasekhar
India's GDP growth has experienced a sudden boost in the middle of 2003. One specific component of the services sector, and interestingly, manufacturing growth seems to have contributed significantly to this transition in growth pattern. But the fact that the domestic market, which played a major role in this scenario, was driven in the final analysis by a financial boom that eased credit availability, reduced interest rates and encouraged debt-financed consumption and investment, makes the growth process fragile and a cause for concern for future policymaking.
Dealing with Short-Term Migration
Oct 4th 2007, C.P. Chandrasekhar & Jayati Ghosh

Short-term migration for work has evidently increased rapidly in recent times in India, but our statistical systems are currently not adequate to capture such flows of labour. In this edition of MacroScan, C.P. Chandrasekhar and Jayati Ghosh discuss the limitations of the existing data, the tendencies that do emerge and the policy implications of short-term economic migration.

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