India needs accountability, should clean up politics, end cronyism: Dr Arun Kumar

By Soumyadip Chattopadhyay, Arjun Kumar
The pandemic pushed the Indian economy to the greatest crisis that it ever had to face, leading to its collapse in the month of April/May 2020. Although the official data computed the fall at 7.7%, the economy has declined by around 29%, estimated Dr Arun Kumar, Malcolm S Adiseshiah Chair Professor, Institute of Social Sciences, New Delhi.
Chairing a panel discussion on the topic, Pandemic & Union Budget 202: Implementation and the way forward, organized by Impact and Policy Research Institute (IMPRI), New Delhi, and Counterview, he argued that the Finance Minister has not taken the correct macroeconomic framework into account and missed a golden chance to shift the economy back onto its tracks. He highlighted the critical challenges of ensuring universal vaccine administration, tackling the new variants of Covid-19 that has emerged, reviving the demand in the economy and bringing an end to the menace of crony capitalism.
Expanding on this growing challenge of cronyism, Dr Kumar listed out a few examples of how crony capitalism could negatively impact several sectors and dismantle the efforts to build back better. He went on to add that the rapid spree of disinvestments that are in the pipeline will flood the asset markets, leading to a drop in the asset prices. This will provide the crony capitalists with cheap assets.
Further, commenting on the increased investments in capital intensive projects, he added that in the allocation of said projects, the crony capitalists may interfere and impair transparent and unbiased allocation. This can lead to the formation of large monopolies in several sectors like telecom etc. Even with regards to the plans of setting up a Development Finance Institution – DFI, he cautioned that cronyism could lead to corruption and bias in the disbursal of funds. Crony capitalism may also dismantle the intentions of setting up Bad banks, he remarked.
Dr Kumar noted that in the garb of promoting the concept of minimum government, maximum Governance, the government is hellbent on its mission to dismantle the public sector. However, the pandemic has shown that the public sector is of critical importance.

Rather than doing away with it completely, the government should focus on making them more efficient and accountable, he suggested. The real problem is the rising crony capitalism that has crept up in the public sector. This needs to be tackled with better implementation of rules and by bringing about a clean-up of politics, he opined.
---
Acknowledgements: Nikhil Jacob, based in Goa, is a research intern at IMPRI, New Delhi, and is pursuing post-graduate diploma in Environmental Law and Policy at the National Law University, Delhi

Comments

King Corona and his descendents: How long will the Dynasty last?

By Dr Amitav Banerjee, MD* “Corona ” is in the media once again, precipitating a déjà-vu feeling and some amount of panic among the people. Among viruses and microorganisms King Corona and its descendents enjoy Royalty Status. "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." This classic quote from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is well known. But does it hold well in current times? The events during the past five years challenge the Bard's view.

India’s 2021 excess deaths: was it the virus — or the containment frenzy?

By Bhaskaran Raman* Tyagu (name changed), a vegetable vendor recalls of his brother’s death in 2021. The victim had a normal fever, but was forcibly taken away to the hospital saying that it was Covid. He had been coerced into taking the Covid-19 “vaccines” by that time. After 10 days in hospital, he died. There was no proper information during his hospital stay, and no one was allowed to visit, saying that visitors could also get Covid.

Old bias, new excuses: How western media misrepresents India’s anti-terror strikes

By Gajanan Khergamker The recent Indian military strikes on Pakistan, dubbed Operation Sindoor, have sparked a storm of international media coverage. Several prominent outlets have portrayed India as the aggressor in the escalating conflict, raising concerns over biased reporting. This commentary critiques coverage by foreign media outlets such as The New York Times , Reuters, BBC, and CNN, which have often been accused of framing India’s actions as escalatory while downplaying or omitting critical context regarding Pakistan’s role in fostering terrorism. By examining historical patterns and current geopolitical dynamics, this analysis highlights the recurring selective framing, omission of evidence, and a tendency to favor narratives aligned with Western geopolitical interests over factual nuance.

जैविक जीवित संसाधनों व प्रकृति पर निर्भर मजदूरों की व्यापक आर्थिक सुरक्षा कैसे हो?

- राज कुमार सिन्हा* भारत में 60 करोड़ से अधिक लोग भूमि, जल, जंगल और समुद्र जैसे प्राकृतिक स्रोतों पर निर्भर हैं । देश में 14.6 करोड़ छोटे और सीमांत किसान, 14.4 करोड़ खेतिहर मजदूर ( बड़ी संख्या में दलित हैं), 27.5 करोड़ वन निवासी, 2.8 करोड़ मछुआरे, 1.3 करोड़ पशुपालक और 1.7 करोड़ कारीगर हैं जो सीधे तौर पर प्रकृति के साथ और प्रकृति के भरोसे काम कर रहे हैं । लगभग 6 करोड़ मौसमी मजदूर हैं जो काम के सिलसिले में लगातार अपने गांव से बाहर जाते हैं और लौटते हैं। प्रकृति निर्भर समुदायों की आर्थिक गतिविधियां जो बड़े पैमाने पर जीवन निर्वाह और छोटी आय के लिए है। वर्तमान आर्थिक नीतियों के कारण, जो कॉर्पोरेट्स और बड़े व्यवसायों का समर्थन करती है, प्रकृति निर्भर समुदाय के लिए अव्यवहारिक होती जा रही है।

राजस्थान, मध्यप्रदेश, पश्चिम बंगाल, झारखंड और केरल फिसड्डी: जल जीवन मिशन के लक्ष्य को पाने समन्वित प्रयास जरूरी

- राज कुमार सिन्हा* जल संसाधन से जुड़ी स्थायी समिति ने वर्तमान लोकसभा सत्र में पेश रिपोर्ट में बताया है कि "नल से जल" मिशन में राजस्थान, मध्यप्रदेश, पश्चिम बंगाल, झारखंड और केरल फिसड्डी साबित हुए हैं। जबकि देश के 11 राज्यों में शत-प्रतिशत ग्रामीणों को नल से जल आपूर्ति शुरू कर दी गई है। रिपोर्ट में समिति ने केंद्र सरकार को सिफारिश की है कि मिशन पुरा करने में राज्य सरकारों की समस्याओं पर गौर किया जाए।

Crying air, water, and earth: A call to conserve our dying natural resources

By Dr. Gurinder Kaur* Air, water, and earth—these natural resources are essential for the survival of all living beings, including humans, animals, and plants. Life in any form is impossible without them. These are precious gifts of nature to humankind. However, in the pursuit of economic growth, modern humans have severely polluted these valuable resources in an attempt to satisfy their greed.

21-day security operation targets Maoist presence, prompts questions on civil impact

By Harsh Thakor* Union Home Minister Amit Shah has described a recent counter-insurgency operation along the Chhattisgarh-Telangana border as a significant achievement for Indian security forces in their efforts against Maoist groups. The three-week-long operation in the Karreguttalu Hills reportedly resulted in the deaths of 31 individuals identified as members of Maoist formations.

Civil society group voices concern over government response to Pahalgam attack

By A Representative Citizens for Democracy (CFD), a civil society group, has expressed serious concern over the government's response to the recent terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. While unequivocally condemning the violence, CFD raised alarm about what it sees as an excessive and politically motivated reaction by the authorities. CFD acknowledged the widespread condemnation of the attack from all sections of society, including strong protests led by local Kashmiri Muslims. However, it criticized the government for failing to provide a transparent account of the security lapses that allowed the attack to occur. It also noted the absence of a clear plan for accountability or a high-level inquiry into the incident. The group questioned the initiation of Operation Sindoor, describing it as a move driven more by domestic political considerations than strategic necessity. CFD warned that such military actions risk long-term instability and divert attention from peaceful an...

Ninety years of the socialist movement in India: What's the path head

By Dr. Sunilam* We are all aware of what the leaders active in the socialist movement have accomplished over the past 90 years. We are also well-acquainted with the sacrifices made by leaders and workers during the freedom struggle and the socialist movement. For the past 45 years, since I became interested in joining the socialist movement as an activist, I have been keen on understanding and analyzing its history. Inspired by 101-year-old freedom fighter Dr. G.G. Parikh and in collaboration with comrades from the Socialist Samagam, I have actively participated in organizing events to mark the 82nd, 85th, and now the 90th anniversaries of the socialist movement.

Search This Blog