Based on social experiments and field observations, Nobel laureate economist Dr Abhijit Banerjee’s coherent vision about the impact of antipoverty policies is quite influential in the domain of policy economics. Grounded to basics, his concept of the ‘Poor Economics’ offers a distinct idea on how psychological and social complexities affecting poverty. This article discusses the core concept of Dr Banerjee’s method of fighting global poverty by informed decision making.
Kathmandu is the city of many stories. It's colourful and very lively. Every corner has its own story to tell to the visitors who come to the city. But, most of the people in Kathmandu don't know there is a refugee community living in the city. The concern for the refugees got into the focus of attention very recently-when Rohingyas escaped to Kathmandu. Here are some untold stories of the refugees from Myanmar who aspire for a dream to have a secured and settled life to come true one day! My...
More than 82 percent of the workforce in India is employed in the unorganised sector, as noted by the International Labour Union in its India Labour Market Update of 2016. This report serves as the main source of data for the workforce in the unorganised sector. Further, the Industry wise distribution of employment in the unorganised sector in India can be seen in the table below by Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII) report called “An Analysis of the Informal Labour Market in India”...
A country with a high standard of living and medical advancement should not bear an ageing burden. However, this might not be the case in India, with economic support for its ageing population becoming an important issue, and the absence of proper health insurance coverage and an inefficient public healthcare system creating bottlenecks in spite of considerable medical advancement. The ageing burden is particularly severe when it comes to elderly people of the low-income group who have to suffer...
There is a higher incidence of poverty in rural areas as compared to urban areas. This is testified by the Planning Commission’s estimate for 2011-12 that 25.7 per cent of the rural population was living below the poverty line (Rs 816 per capita per month for rural areas) while for urban areas the proportion was 13.7 per cent of the population being below the poverty line (Rs 1,000 per capita per month for urban areas). Thus while more than a tenth of the urban population was living below the urban...
A demographic dividend occurs when the rate of economic growth is increased due to a change in the age structure of a population that favours the presence of more working age people than that of a dependent population. A demographic dividend thus is the result of a changing age structure of the population. Basic Concepts A higher percentage of the working-age population can raise the economic output in a country as well as increase its per capita income. A high demographic dividend requires...
Globalization is a progressing phenomenon marked by increasing interaction among people across the countries and between people and entities such as nation-states and corporations through the information and communication technologies (ICTs), international trade and culture and ideas. Globalization is propelled primarily by economic integration of the world economy. As in globalization in India as has been the case with many other countries, India has felt the effects of globalization through ensuing...
Although budgetary allocations have increased through the years, the overall share of research and development in India’s GDP has been hovering around 0.7 per cent on an average over the last few years.
In the post-independence period, Indian cities had remained auxiliary to the concerns of balanced regional development. The city as a territorial unit in regional planning and development had largely not been the focus; the urban was neglected in favour of the rural by most national leaders at the time (Batra, 2009). With the recent introduction of smart cities, it can be seen that they are being thought of more comprehensively as planning units in order to build sustainability. The Need for Cities...
During the British period in India, the policy orientation of the government in India was more so to protect the British economy than to look after the welfare of people in India, with law & order, tax collection and defence being the primary objectives. Although British modernized India with rail tracks, education, etc, the indigenous industry was largely ignored, producing a period of stagnation for India’s traditional economy. With no great increase in output or productivity, regional disparities...
