Discover ItDiscover ItAn excellent blog about Indian Current Affairs as a subject of study for those appearing for competitive examinations in India like the Civil Services Exams. The content is like notes prepared from daily newspapers and is updated on daily basis. 
Articles
The case for according MES (Market Economy Status) to China
2008-01-14 08:09:00 It is another good piece in today’s ET that is worth our attention in the context of our PM’s ongoing visit to China . It makes a strong case for India’s according MES to China. Do you remember our noting on the subject earlier in our blogs? Look at it here. Then the case was that according such recognition is not in India’s interest. But today’s piece argues for according such status. Look at the reasons: Not according the status to China on grounds of its extending subsidies to a whole range of sectors is not correct. While government subsidies do remain an issue in some industries in China, there is no evidence that this problem is endemic throughout large sectors of the Chinese economy. Also, other countries (such as Russia) which suffer from similar problems already enjoy a Market Economy Status . Whether or not a country grants MES to China has minimal impact on trade balance with China. Take the US as an example. Even though the US has not granted MES t... More About: Case
Bank recapitalisation race
2008-01-14 07:24:00 A very good article by UR Bhat in today’s ET on the subject is worth a read to comprehend economic developments that have far reaching global ramifications. Do look at it here. Those of us not having the patience or time to go through the full article will be happy reading the following question-answer noting. What is at the root of the massive write-downs that are witnessed in the global banking scene of late? Bailing out bank sponsored off-balance sheet vehicles such as conduits, structured investment vehicles and money market funds beyond the formal legal obligation of the sponsoring bank was at the root of these massive write-downs. This above development has far reaching implications for the shareholders, the accounting profession and also the banking regulators. Let’s look at them. Shareholders: This was a risk that they never bargained for but still had to pay for in terms of value erosion. Accounting profession: It would do well to revisit ... More About: Race , Bank
TIPS – Treasury Inflation Protected Securities
2008-01-13 08:19:00 This is one more new concept for us to learn from a much respected columnist whose writings we keep following in our blogs. Mythili Bhusnurmath explains us today about TIPS. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities . Advise you to read the full article once. Do so here. What makes the concept interesting is the fact that interest incomes are not indexed to inflation. The result is that – if you are dependent on interest income only, then over a period of time you will be poorer than what you were some time ago. Tips are a special type of government securities that offer investors protection from inflation. First issued in the US in 1997, (many other countries have similar instruments) this is how Tips works: the principal increases in line with inflation (as measured by the consumer price index) and decreases as prices fall. When the instrument matures the investor is paid the inflation-adjusted principal or the original principal whichever is more. Since a Tips ...
What has Diwali got to do with the IIP – Index of Industrial Production?
2008-01-12 14:33:00 IIP represents roughly one fourth of the total value of goods and services produced in the country. This makes it an important indicator worth monitoring periodically. Industrial production grew 5.3% in November 2007 from a year earlier; its slowest this fiscal. The cumulative growth for the first 8 months of the fiscal stood at 9.2%. Explaining that it is just a statistical blip rather than a reflection of any tangible slowdown in the economy, economists have come with the ‘Diwali effect’ theory. They attribute the lower figure to a cut back in production in the festival month after aggressively building up inventory in the previous months to meet the demand, apart from a high base in November, 2006 when industrial output has risen 15.8%. During the festival month manufacturing plants are closed for a while. Last year Diwali fell in October and so did the growth rate of the IIP to 4.5%. But the index rose sharply (15.8%) in the post festival month of Novem... More About: Industrial Production , Production , Index
The case for a new global financial order
2008-01-11 15:40:00 The subprime mess in the US is slowly being seen as the failure of the existing global financial architecture. While the domestic financial systems of the rest of the world are monitored constantly, US seems to have been exempt from the process. It is now being debated whether or not it is a result of the lack of oversight / monitoring over the US system that led to this state of affairs. The piece written by Rajrishi Singhal is very educative in this context. Take a look at it here. But some points worth our excerpting: Following the Asian financial crisis, finance ministers and central bankers from 22 ‘systemically significant’ countries (including India) met in Washington DC in April 1998 to examine the functioning of the international financial system. This grouping has over time evolved into an important international forum. This grouping felt that the global capital markets and financial system could be further strengthened through action in five broad areas:... More About: Financial , Global , Case , Order
Should higher education curricula be standardised?
2007-12-12 14:23:00 It is a debate that is gaining attention of late in the media. Read the full debate that appeared in ET here. Some points worth our noting from this debate: 1. Bringing about uniformity in the curricula has ramifications for the liberal ethos of higher education. These ramifications will be primarily in the form of curtailing the creative potential of teachers and students to ultimately make the system subservient to market needs. 2. Making courses subservient to the market needs in the name of linking the life inside and outside of the college, pushes the creative potential of the teacher as well as the student to the backseat. 3. Every region has a distinct socio-economic and cultural ethos which demands specific curriculum and pedagogy. Students coming from these varied backgrounds need varied curricula and pedagogic methods. 4. The perils that would result from implementing such a decision without adequate ground work would be: a. Firstl... More About: Education , Higher , Higher Education
Answers to shout-box queries-17
2007-11-20 17:39:00 18 Nov 07, 19:50manpreet: sir could you please explain th term "depreciation" used in economics in simple language..thanks.If you buy an eatable say for Rs. 100 and consume it equally over two days, how much worth of the eatable remains at the end of the first day? Since the consumption is done equally over two days, we can say that your asset (eatable) has depreciated by Rs. 50 over one day. On the second day (beginning of the day that is) its worth is Rs. 50 only. I have taken this example for the sake of simplicity. Apply the same analogy to any real asset like scooters, cars, motors, aircraft etc. Their life time extends over several years. So if you would like to know what is their value at the beginning of say the second or third or nth year, what would its value be? The depreciated value over that period. Let us assume you buy a scooter for Rs. 30,000. If the envisaged life of the scooter is say 15 years; then its depreciated value at the end of two years would be Rs.... More About: Answers , Shout
Subprime crisis fallout
2007-10-15 12:37:00 Though we have noted elaborately on the subprime crisis in our blogs, we should not miss when great economists like Joseph Stiglitz write on the subject. It gives us a different perspective. Take a look at what he wrote in today?s ET on how the mortgage lending went wrong: People have borrowed money to indulge in consumption. And Greenspan has encouraged it. He encouraged them to take variable rate mortgages, at a time when interest rates had nowhere to go but up. Predatory lenders went further and offered negative amortization loans. In these loans, the amount owed went up year after year ? i.e., ballooning payments. Borrowers were wrongly advised by the financiers that when payments balloon, they need not worry as the house prices would rise faster, it is easy to refinance with another negative amortization loan. But the reality soon dawned on everybody, as people were left with mortgage payments which have far exceeded their entire income. He further says that ?secu... More About: Subprime , Crisis , Prim , Fallout , Cris
Copy of recent 100 shout-box discussions - 1
2007-10-13 09:14:00 amjad sir, any site for psychology? 12 Oct 07 18:5459.91.246.66 amjad any way to read the old discussions completely? 12 Oct 07 18:3659.91.246.66 amjad sir, 12 Oct 07 18:3559.91.246.66 vikraman policies, BASEL II which requires 15% of to be set aside for operational risks, IPDI has been exempted from SLR/CRR+ call option is disabled which idon't understand why. 12 Oct 07 16:45210.211.175.51 vikraman Thanks a lot for clearing my 3 doubts. Sir, regarding the introduction of Innovative perpetual debt instrument(IPDI) and debt capitals to help banks generate funds in view of tighetening monetary 12 Oct 07 16:40210.211.175.51 vikraman We must soon adpot newer basket of G&S to calcluate the WPI. The present one idicates the taste and preferences of 1993-94 12 Oct 07 16:37210.211.175.51 vikraman Sir, There is a debate about changing the basket of goods that constitute the WPI index. Though the inflation has been "tamed", the food prices are st... More About: Recent , Copy , Shout
Answers to shout-box queries-16
2007-10-13 08:42:00 I answer below two questions raised by Vikraman in the shout-box.Question:12 Oct 07, 16:36vikraman: Sir, There is a debate about changing the basket of goods that constitute the WPI index. Though the inflation has been "tamed", the food prices are still climbing as indicated by CPI(AL) and CPI(IW).We must soon adpot newer basket of G&S to calcluate the WPI. The present one idicates the taste and preferences of 1993-94.Answer:Yes, my take is that the WPI basket should be reconstituted once in every five years to reflect ground realities. Actually, my preference is for the CPI's adoption for measuring inflation. Any idiosyncracies that may arise out of its adoption have to be/can be tackled at the time of revamping the basket of goods and services itself. I hope the government comes out with a committee to examine the issue ind detail. It should be also mandated to look into the issue of which of the inflation figures have to be taken into account by the monetary authorities ... More About: Answers , Shout , Erie
Answers to shout-box queries-15
2007-10-05 12:52:00 29 Sep 07, 22:15jasmeet singh: Sir, what is core inflation and how is it different from WPI (in india),? is there any specific index to measure core inflation in india?Core inflation is a measure of inflation which excludes certain items that face volatile price movements. Example fuel prices. In many countries, fuel prices see wide fluctuations. Hence they are excluded from the computations of core inflation. When they are included it is called headline inflation. WPI is just an index. It by itself is not inflation. An increase in the index represents inflation.I give below an excerpt from our RBI Governor's speech in June 2006 about why we don't consider core inflation in our inflation calculus:"Finally, let me also respond to Professor Jacob Frenkel who raised the general issue of focussing on the core-inflation in policy and not the headline inflation in spite of persistence of high oil prices for a long period. In India, we could not consider core-inflation for several ... More About: Answers , Shout , Erie
Answers to shout-box queries-14
2007-09-28 15:18:00 28 Sep 07, 10:34 Sadananda: sir, i have asked earlier hw the value of Rupee is decided u said Market, Which Market & hw. tell me by example Market, means the foreign exchange market operating in India. You don't see it in a physical form like the Bombay Stock Exchange. It operates in a nebulous way. The market participants in it operate through telephones/fax/telex/internet to conduct their trades. If more dollars are on offer (for sale), the rupee will rise and vice-versa. The foreign exchange earned by various companies will have to converted into rupees; isn't it? So, they sell those dollars through their banks or directly. Similarly importers will be need of dollars, to pay for the goods and services they import from elsewhere. That is how there will be demand for various foreign currencies and Indian rupees. But because the dollar is the dominant currency in which many countries prefer to operate their import/export transactions, it effectively wor... More About: Answers , Shout , Erie
The Darfur Crisis
2007-09-27 15:36:00 I came across an excellent articulation of the origin of this crisis from Jan Pronk, a senior Dutch politician and statesman who worked as the head of the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS), in today?s Hindu. It is worth a repeat. Do read the full interview here. The seeds of this conflict lie in the historic, tribal, economic, ethnic and ecological dimensions of the problem that had been slowly unfolding over the years in Darfur . Historically speaking, the borders of Sudan were drawn in the Berlin conference of 1892 at the behest of the colonial powers, with nobody from Sudan being even present there. Subsequently, the north of the country was administered differently and the south in another manner. And before that, the slave trade, dominated by the Arab constituents within the tribal identities, had created their own imbalances. The baggage and legacy of all this laid the foundations for mistrust and power struggles, leading to the conflicts of the present day. And then pr... More About: Crisis , Cris
Implications of becoming a signatory to NPT
2007-09-22 09:43:00 Signing the NPT would force India to forswear its nuclear option. Acceding to NPT means accepting the three basic principles represented by it -- non-proliferation, disarmament, and the right only to peacefully use nuclear technology. Can a country, placed as India is, sign the NPT? More so when the very foundations of the treaty are being shaken thoroughly? In trying to comprehend the implications, it is very important for us to look at these three following questions: What made India not sign the NPT in the first place? Has anything changed between then and now? Or whether these changes have highlighted the necessity of our accession to the treaty? India?s objection is that the NPT creates a club of "nuclear haves" and a larger group of "nuclear have-nots" by restricting the legal possession of nuclear weapons to those states that tested them before 1967. But the treaty never explains on what ethical grounds such a distinction is valid. Secondly, whil... More About: Tory , Implications
US Federal reserve and its terminology
2007-09-19 13:14:00 ?Federal Reserve cuts key rate by 50 basis points? Amidst fears that the subprime crisis is going to have a negative impact of the other sectors of the US economy and thereby speed up a much feared recession in the US, the Fed has cut the interest rate by 0.5% (100 basis points = 1%) from 5.25% to 4.75%. This reduction is expected to boost consumer spending and economic activity, thus ensuring that the US economy doesn?t go into a recession. A paper headline like the one mentioned above, has three unknown terms for a novice. ?Federal reserve?, ?key rate? and ?basis points?. Let me explain these terms for you today. Federal Reserve System (also the Federal Reserve; informally The Fed) is the central banking system of the United States. The Federal Reserve System is a quasi-governmental/quasi-private banking system composed of (1) the presidentially-appointed Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C.; (2) the Federal Open Market Committee;... More About: Terminology , Term , Serve
More about subprime crisis and consequences
2007-09-13 15:56:00 "Developing a new risk paradigm? is an excellent article written in today?s ET by TK Arun. A must read for those who want to understand the play of subprime crisis on developing countries? economies. It gives an excellent explanation of how the crisis started. · The subprime crisis started with lenders in the US pushing home loans to people who just didn?t have the capacity to service them. · These unviable loans do not stay on the books of the lenders for long. They are securitised and sold off to other investors in various esoteric combinations. How risky these instruments were, the investors didn?t have a clue ? they chose to swallow the triple A rating the credit rating agencies gave them and bought them up by the tonne anyway. Some other questions that are answered in straight-forward manner by this article include the following. What adverse affects were played out by the subprime crisis? · When interest rates went up, as the Fed raised rat... More About: Subprime , Crisis , Consequences , Rime , Prim
Oaths of Office
2007-09-10 12:26:00 Why are oaths of office and secrecy different for various functionaries in the Constitution of India? The President and the Vice President are above the three pillars of the Constitution of India viz., the Legislature, the Judiciary and the Executive. Perhaps, this explains their oath being mentioned in the main Constitution (Arts. 60 and 69) itself; not in any Schedule thereof. They affirm that they will discharge their duties faithfully. The President undertakes to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the law of India. The Vice President undertakes to faithfully discharge his duties and owes his faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India. All the functionaries have to express their allegiance to the Constitution of India and upholding the sovereignty and integrity of the country. The obligation relating to their oaths of office and/or secrecy is laid down in Articles 75(4), 99, 124(6), 148(2), 164(3), 188 and 219 of the Constitution. The actual te... More About: Office
Answers to Shoutbox queries-13
2007-09-09 09:34:00 8 Sep 07, 23:03 vikram sahasrabudhe: hello, I am appearing for the IAS mains this Oct, I wanted to know the source from which you have prepared these notes ? Is it a mix of Hindu , TOI and ET ? or only Economic Times, Please let me know. These notes come in very handy at the last moment , I have experienced it in the PT . . though I was preparing the notes that time but now as I am short of time . . its not possible as a result, I would be skipping some part of the newspapers . . so please let me know so that i can sort out my own notes too . . n rely on some part of ur notes as well as mine . . Ans: It is a mix of ET and Hindu for the most part. I note something from TOI usually on Sundays. My recommendation is ? be selective in what you note. Be on your own when you see something complicated and/or not the run-of-the-mill stuff. Because such preparation gives you all the background needed for articulating a point. But for others, you can safely depend on this. My blogs... More About: Answers , Shoutbox , Shout , Erie
Is using forex reserves for funding infrastructure too risky?
2007-08-30 10:50:00 Yes, argues an ET editorial. Let?s take a look at it. The government has directed RBI to invest $5 bn of forex reserves in the special purpose vehicle (IIFCL) floated for funding infrastructure needs of the country. The entity would fund equipment buys and investment by Indian companies abroad. How far such a direction is tenable is questionable. RBI?s mandate of investments is drawn from Section 17 of the RBI Act. It allows investments only in gilt-edged securities with maturities less than 10 years, in bonds issued by other sovereign states and deposits with multilateral institutions. But government has argued that clause 13 of the same Section empowers the Central board to approve investments by RBI in foreign institutions. Funding infrastructure needs out of our huge forex reserves is bad because, it is not lack of funds which is hindering infrastructure growth; it is lack of bankable projects. In such a scenario, funding the unbankable project through the us... More About: Forex , Infrastructure , Reserves , Reserve
Hyderabad Bomb Blasts
2007-08-28 17:15:00 A couple of you have written to me showing your concern for my safety in Hyderabad . But just as news broke about the bomb blasts, I was leaving the city on a two day trip to the interiors of Andhra Pradesh on a personal trip. I am pretty much safe and fine. But all through my trip, my thoughts rarely strayed away from the people who lost their lives. Many of us may be found wanting in expressing our regrets and grief. But not so experienced journos and other senior editorial personnel at the ET. Take a look at this excellent comment: Indian politics today, is either about harassing Muslims for the sake of Hindutva, or pandering to retrograde impulses in the name of secularism. The abysmal record of our intelligence and investigation agencies, both in terms of preventing deadly terror strikes and correctly figuring out who the real culprits behind successful soft-target attacks are, is partly a function of such moribund politics.If you were ask... More About: Bomb
Should Ronen Sen be recalled?
2007-08-24 10:16:00 I am sure by now all of you are familiar with the ?headless chicken? statement that was made by the ambassador of India to the US while giving an interview to the press.The politicians, especially the BJP and the Left were baying for his blood since then, citing breach of parliamentary privileges. His comments are seen as an affront to the elected members of parliament.I am a bit surprised as to the venom that is on display even in the Press. While the Hindu has called for recall, today?s ET appears to have taken a more reasoned approach.It argues for a thorough codification of what can be called the parliamentary privileges. Concepts like contempt of court and parliamentary privileges do impinge on the freedom of expression. Therefore, while their existence should be welcomed, there has to be clear cut guidelines as to when a person is deemed to have breached the privilege. Should omnibus comments like the one made by our ambassador be deemed as an insult? I don?t think so. ... More About: Recalled
Can the sub-prime crisis rock the international financial system? What rol
2007-08-23 16:34:00 We have been following the US sub-prime crisis for quite some time. I always wondered as to why Prof. TT Ram Mohan has not written on the subject for a long time. Here it comes today. And he seems to be grudgingly accepting (vindicating my stand) that the problem can be serious and perhaps pose some systemic risks. Though he did not say it in these words, this concern seems to be there somewhere back in his mind. His article poses and answers two very good questions. Take a look at it here. In the process of knowing the answers, we can get our fundas right. How could the sup-prime crisis rock the international financial system? Banks are exposed to the sub-prime crisis not directly, but through derivative instruments known as CDOs. Hedge funds hold the riskier part of the CDO (Collateralized Debt Obligations) tranches. Their holdings of CDOs form a high proportion of their portfolios. As a result, hedge funds are extremely ... More About: International , System , Rock , Financial , The International
On fertilizer subsidy policy
2007-08-21 18:49:00 You can?t get a better dekko at well informed opinion on this subject than today?s debate in Perspectives column of the ET. Take a look at ?How can India reform its fertilizer policy?? After reading it, you may find that the following excerpts will perhaps work as reminder points to you when you want to review/reformulate your opinion on the matter: Some facts about the subsidy amount The subsidy bill for 2006-07 which was budgeted to be Rs. 17,253 cores has actually turned out to be Rs. 22,452 crores. Business sources say, it might actually be Rs. 30,000 crores.For 2007-08, this is expected to touch an amount of Rs. 50,000 crores. Research has shown: That almost half of the fertilizer subsidy goes to the fertilizer industry rather than to farmers.The marginal returns of government spending, are lower than for other sectors like agriculture R&D, rural roads, rural education or irrigation. What this means is that for every ... More About: Policy , Fertilizer , Subs
Overnight Index Swap
2007-08-21 11:26:00 One of you asked me through the shout-box to explain about this. Here I go. Before we go on to learning a bit about this concept, let us first take a look at what a swap is in the first place. Traditionally, it is the exchange of one security for another to change the maturity (bonds), quality of issues (stocks or bonds), or because investment objectives have changed. Recently, swaps have grown to include currency swaps and interest rate swaps. If firms in separate countries have comparative advantages on interest rates, then a swap could benefit both firms. For example, one firm may have a lower fixed interest rate, while another has access to a lower floating interest rate. These firms could swap to take advantage of the lower rates. That is they exchange their interest rates with one another. There are a number of swap contracts that can be entered into by two parties. Basis Rate Swap , Bond Swap, Commodity Swap, Credit Default Swap, Currency Swap, Interest Rate Swap,... More About: Index
Should reservation for SMEs to be done away with?
2007-08-19 11:58:00 Backward march on SMEs, says today? ET editorial. Is it? The paper took strong objection to the proposal of the government, which seeks to give a legal backing to the existing price and purchase preference available to micro and small enterprises. At present the government has reserved 358 items for exclusive purchase from registered small scale units. They also have a 15% price preference in case of items manufactured by both SSI and large-scale units. It says that this step is retrograde for the following reasons: It discourages scale economies and in the long run compromises their competitiveness.The idea runs counter to the intended progressive de-reservation of small-scale sector.As the list of items reserved for manufacture by the SSI sector has been pruned from 900 in the late 1990?s to about 114 now, it implies that a large number of the 358 items reserved for exclusive purchase from the SSI sector are competing with the... More About: Done , Reserva
India @60
2007-08-15 16:28:00 Today?s ET has so much to read and write from on our Independence Day. One should at least take a glance at some of the excellent content that is posted on India Empowered ? Young at 60. I found that some thoughts expressed by beloved our PM need excerpting in our blog. So, here we go: The idea of India, of unity in diversity, of openness and inclusiveness has withstood the test of time and history and is our great contribution to humankind these past 60 years.In the first three decades of Independence, we grew at 3.5% per annum. In the second three decades, our annual growth rate went up to nearly 6%. In the past few years, the growth rate has been close to 9% per annum. This has been made possible by a rising rate of investment, now at around 35% of national income, and rising productivity of labour and capital. If we can sustain these rates, and step up the productivity of land labour, we should be able to ...
Attack on Taslima
2007-08-13 16:02:00 The attack on Taslima Nusreen, the exiled Bangladeshi writer living in India, on her recent visit to Hyderabad to release a Telugu translation of her book exemplifies an attack on liberal values and the growing insensitivity towards discussion and debate. This is substance of an excellent article written in today?s Hindu. Take a look at the full article here. I give below excerpts/notes from the article for our record. The article outlines three instances of such intolerance for discussion and debate. The first of them is the vandalism perpetrated by VHP activists of a painting exhibition in Vadodara. The second is the intolerance displayed against the remarks made by a Political Science lecturer in Hyderabad, during a class while discussing Salman Rushdie. The third is the attack on Taslima Nusreen, again at Hyderabad. All these attacks make us ponder about the following three trends that are emerging. The first is that the governments? muted reactions to the inst... More About: Attack , Atta
What do we need to know about the Novartis case decided by the Madras High
2007-08-10 12:28:00 The media has reported just a few days back about the Madras High Court striking down a case filed by the pharma major Novartis about India?s patent regime not being compliant with TRIPS regime of the WTO. Novartis being a Swiss pharma major and that too when a Swiss dignitary was visiting India, there was all round expectation that the Swiss authorities would pressure the Indian government on behalf of Novartis. But no such thing happened and the very next day the Union Minister of Commerce and Trade Mr. Kamal Nath was clarifying that no other country has a grouse against India?s Intellectual Property Regime. The visiting Swiss federal councilor Doris Leuthard was also quoted as saying ?We have to accept the settlement and the Swiss government never engages itself or questions any judicial announcements.? What exactly was at stake in the case? Novartis manufactures a drug called Glivec, which is used for treatment of cancer. It was granted patent for this by India in 19... More About: Case , Cide , Artis
Replies to Shout-box discussions
2007-08-10 10:10:00 Here are my replies to some of the shout-box queries that I couldn't answer because of my tight schedule during the last couple of days.9 Aug 07, 21:33never0: what is combustible ice mean??It is colloquial name given to Methane hydrate. It is natural gas frozen inside a crystal lattice of water. It is reported that about 164 cubic meters of natural gas can be released from one cubic meter of methane hydrate. 9 Aug 07, 16:53Rishi: Where does the sultan of brunei stand among the richest menAs per the latest info available in Wikipedia, he tops the list of Heads of State by networth with about $30 bn.9 Aug 07, 15:59Rishi: What is the differnce between insurgent , militant , terrorist ? Its slightly out of the line of the discussion , but I felt like asking..Nothing but semantics. During our independence struggle, two streams of people fighting for the same cause was discernible. Those that believed in armed struggle and those that believed in peaceful struggle. There is no such ... More About: Disc , Shout
Is de-population a threat or an opportunity?
More articles from this author:2007-08-08 12:30:00 India and China have been at the forefront on containing population growth. The latter was more successful than the former. But of late a different kind of thinking has permeated the collective consciousness at the higher levels in academia and bureaucracy which argues that population growth should not be seen as a negative sign but that the demographic dividend has to be harnessed properly. Alok Sheel is a rare bureaucrat who keeps writing excellent and well researched articles on diverse subjects in ET. He argues that the long-term threat to the human species may well be from de-population rather than overpopulation. Read the full article here if you have patience. The impatient can have a look at a couple of excerpts from it below. He says that the population scare in developing countries was actually generated by the Club of Rome (a global think tank that deals with a variety of international political issues) and scholars like Paul Ehrlich. It was preceded centuri... More About: Opportunity , Threat , Unit , Pula 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
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