Solutions to Change

By Dr Martin Patrick, Chief Economist Describing the Goods and Services Tax (GST) as "a monumental tax reform", the Finance Minister of India, Arun Jaitley argues that the implementation of GST will help to add two per cent to the national GDP. He said it will benefit all segments of business, increase tax base and reduce harassment of tax payers. On the other hand, Goldman Sachs has put out estimates which show that the Modi Government’s model for the GST will not raise growth, will push up consumer prices inflation and may not result in increased tax revenue collections. What is the reality? What is GST?  GST is nothing but a hybrid version of the Value Added Tax (VAT), modified to suit the complexities of a federal system. The central taxes do not cover value addition in goods beyond the manufacturing stage, and in services only listed services are covered. On the other hand, in the case of state taxes, only sale of goods is covered. GST rectifies ...

By Jayati Narain* It is ironic that the autorickshaw, which was used by the Aam Admi Party(AAP) for much of their campaigning in Delhi, seems to be the same thing they want to take out from the streets of Delhi. In the run up to the 2013 assembly elections in Delhi, the new and seemingly most promising party- the Aam Aadmi party, was lauded for their innovative campaigning strategy. Which involved actually involving the aam aadmi and using autos as a campaigning tool. A month before the election it was difficult to find an auto in the city without atleast a jharoo sticker or poster on it. A year and half into the AAP government (putting together both times they came to power), their definition of who the ‘aam aadmi’ is seems to have dramatically shifted. Or it simply has seized to matter! AAP seems to be on a mission to revamp Delhi’s public transport system. While change is definitely needed, their policies are more focused towards car users, even when dealing...

 By Tarun Nair* The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has been in the news off late, mostly for the right reasons. Heralded as the answer to the World Bank’s deficiencies which include its exclusive representation of European interests, it is touted to be a mechanism which will singularly fulfil Asia’s development needs through timely funding. Considering that a recent report pegs Asia’s infrastructural development to require around 8 trillion dollars’ worth of investment, the AIIB may indeed occupy a place of great importance, with its 100 billion dollar capital allocation.  (china.org.cn) However, though the initiative must be welcomed, no extreme positions can be taken as of now, for it has certain aspects which must be carefully evaluated first. Until the shares, voting and veto rights are announced, it is early to comment on the role played by the organisation. Other concerns abound about whether the bank will be dominated by Chinese interests as an...

 By  Pallavi Rachel George * “It’s Road Safety, Not Rocket Science” is the road safety program of the city of Philadelphia. The program provides extremely catchy phrases like “objects in the mirror appear only when looked at- its road safety not rocket science”, telling its citizens to be smart on the roads. The initiative has received a lot of attention. The reason why I began the article with this example is to quickly make the reader wonder about a ny such programs in their locality. If you were able to come up with one, kudos. If however, like the majority of the people, you weren’t able to find one, then we need to do some thinking. Every year, approximately 1.3 million people die as the result of road traffic collisions — more than 3,500 deaths per day. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), road traffic accidents kill more people around the world than malaria, and are the leading cause of death for young people aged five to 29 – especially in de...

By Tarun Nair* A terrible death seems to have befallen the United Nations in recent times, an entity which was born out of the horrors of the great wars and was instituted as a collective to serve mankind in the times to come. Today, it is an endeavour devoid of the very direction and purpose it was endowed with at its inception, failing time and again to grasp the demands of contemporary realities. The foremost platform of incisive international action has turned into a farce of sorts, a tool in the hands of prominent powers, myopic as they are in the confines of their own interests. So do we need UN anymore? One cannot discount the fact that the organisation has certain glaring loopholes in its existing structure which prevent for its optimum functioning. The debate regarding reforms and more importantly, what kind of reforms are needed, has been going on for several decades now, with extreme positions being taken up on the spectrum of consensus. The process of reforms how...

By Dr. D. Dhanuraj* In the recent times, the most sensational topic in Kerala politics has been that Solar Scam and how it has talked about Sarita Nair (said to be the chief culprit) in the whole scam. As the investigation and the daily media beats progress, it results in banality over what the reality reflects. This reality is nothing but the fundamentals of what led to the alleged scam. Why so many names are dragged to the controversy given their linkages to the scam? According to Doing Business ranking by the World Bank, India is doing is poorly so that the present and past dispensations in New Delhi started crawling at how to improve the business climate and investment opportunities in India. In the ranking of Doing Business, India is ranked at 134 as per 2014 report. Comparing 'starting a business' in India vs BRIC rank in 2014, India is positioned at 179 well below their counter parts. In the case of Kerala, Kochi was the studying point for the index in 2009...

By D Dhanuraj and Rahul V Kumar Among the top garment retailers in India, Fabindia outlet in Goa was in the limelight when an alleged instance of voyeurism was exposed by the Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani. At least four employees of the store was arrested immediately following the expose. The Goa police allegedly cracked the case in less than a week and the accused was arrested.The Fabindia incident gained immediate attention of the public primarily because it involved a Union Minister.It is very likely to fade immediately more or less due to the same reasons. However, there were other important aspects of the case that remained less explored. In the forefront of these aspects is how ‘markets’ take up responsibility in tiding a crisis. Unlike the case fading suddenly, market responsibility is likely to have beneficial long term consequences. A major lesson that could be learned from the Fabindia issue is that ‘markets could bargain social responsibility more quickly t...