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| India:
An Economic Agenda for 2004 |
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This
set of articles discusses some important development
issues faced by the Indian economy and presents policy
alternatives about how these issues can be tackled by
the forthcoming Union Budget of 2005. These articles
were presented at a convention organised by the Safdar
Hashmi Memorial Trust (SAHMAT) and the journal 'Social
Scientist' on 5 July 2004 at New Delhi. |
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| How
Feasible is a Rural Employment Guarantee? |
| Jayati
Ghosh & C.P. Chandrasekhar |
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There
is no need to defend a rural employment guarantee scheme
against those who perversely welcome ''dream budgets''
with tax concessions as progressive and market-friendly,
while illegitimately dismissing an employment guarantee
scheme that is targeted at increasing capital formation
and productivity in rural India. |
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| Regulating
Capital Flows |
| Jayati
Ghosh |
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The
new government must recognise that capital controls
have to form a basic part of the overall economic strategy.
Such controls must be over both inflows and outflows,
and be flexible and responsive to change. Otherwise
it would be difficult to implement the other aspects
of the planned economic programme effectively.
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|
| A
Brief Outline of a Critique of the Common Minimum Programme
in respect of Public Sector and Public Services |
| K. Ashok
Rao |
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Discarding
the opposition to neo-liberal economic policies in an
effort to strike a 'broad -based' alliance against the
communal forces can be suicidal. The Trade Unions and
all patriotic sections of the Indian people must understand
that the defence of the public sector and public services
remains the main agenda of their struggle, which is
totally undiluted by the Common Minimum Programme of
the United Progressive Alliance.
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Centre-State Financial Relations:
How Wise will a Nation-wide
VAT be? |
| Ashok
Mitra |
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The
2004 Lok Sabha elections marks the emergence of India's
regional parties as entities as powerful as its two
major national parties. This verdict calls for a realignment
of Centre-State relations in favour of the States, including
suggestions for a drastic revision of the existing financial
relations. Unfortunately, the nation-wide Value Added
Tax, as mentioned in the Common Minimum Programme, aims
to replace sales taxation, the main revenue-raising
instrument at the disposal of State governments.
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Marginalized
Groups and the Common Minimum Program |
| Sukhadeo
Thorat |
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Where
do the marginalized groups in Indian society stand today?
Although there has been some improvement in certain
spheres, the level of living of the marginalized communities
has not improved. The government needs to focus on policies
to improve the ownership of income-earning capital assets
(agriculture land, and non-land), employment, human
resource & health situation, as well as the prevention
of discrimination to ensure fair participation of the
marginalized communities in the private and the pubic
sectors.
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Expenditure on
Education in India: A Short Note |
| Subhanil
Chowdhury & Prasenjit Bose |
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The
importance of education in economic development is accepted
across the ideological divide in economic theory and
policymaking. However, in India, both the recent phase
of market-oriented reforms and the earlier phase of
state-led development planning have failed to ensure
access to basic education for the masses. The UPA government
has to make a decisive break from its predecessor and
mobilize adequate resources for universal elementary
education through taxation of the rich and privileged.
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Industrial Policy:
The Way Ahead |
| C.P.
Chandrasekhar |
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Given
that a nation's economic strength is in the final analysis
based on the strength of its commodity producing sectors,
this article looks at some of the principal measures
that the Indian government can adopt immediately to
redress the distortions that have resulted from the
indiscriminate liberalization of the 1990s.
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Trade
Liberalization and Agriculture: Challenges before India |
| Biswajit
Dhar & Murali Kallummal |
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The
increasing economic integration of the Indian economy
with global processes has brought considerable challenges
at the door of its agricultural sector. But, the reforms
programme introduced since the early 1990s have neglected
the sector that supports the largest share of the country's
workforce. With its agricultural sector facing a decline
in productivity of several major crops and unfair competition
from cheap imports, it is vital for India to adopt a
two-pronged strategy.
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| July
5, 2004. |
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