What will it take for a Finance Commission to eliminate vertical fiscal imbalance in Indian federalism? R. Mohan and I estimate that the Union government must devolve to the States about 49% of the central taxes -- in place of the present 41%. In today's The Hindu The Hindu

As part of our series on #PovertyInIndia, we are happy to announce a forthcoming online panel discussion in collaboration with Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung (RLS), ‘Measuring Poverty in India’, on Wednesday, December 18, 2024, from 3 pm IST onwards. The discussion will be chaired by

The vertical fiscal imbalance in India, as in many other countries, arises out of the expenditure obligations of the states being more than their revenue-raising powers. R. Ramakumar and R Mohan write in EPW: epw.in/journal/2024/5…

Digi Yatra has been creating a mess in Indian airports. The number of lanes for ordinary fliers is drastically cut, and those for DY raised. You see long lines of ordinary fliers and empty DY lanes. Talk to the DY staff, and they will agree how inefficient the new arrangement is!

Dr. Fauci on his pardon: "Let me be perfectly clear: I have committed no crime and there are no possible grounds for any allegation or threat of criminal investigation or prosecution of me. The fact is, however, that the mere articulation of these baseless threats, and the

According to Politico, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been ordered to remove all climate change references from its websites and submit related content for further review. politico.com/news/2025/01/3…

We are happy to announce that the Foundation for Agrarian Studies will be holding an “International Conference on Agrarian Change”, from November 6 through 9, 2025, that will take stock of current thinking and scholarship on rural change. Learn more about the conference:

The end of another era! What a career!!

This signal achievement of public sector agricultural science in India is to be celebrated. Congratulations to Indian Council of Agricultural Research. and its scientists, especially Viswanathan Chinnusamy. Let this be a trailblazer for other institutions.

What are the shifting dynamics of class, caste, and gender in rural India today? How are agrarian relations evolving amid technological and economic change? As part of the upcoming International Conference on Agrarian Studies, the Foundation invites papers that explore these

Time our regulatory bodies and ranking agencies take notice. The Research Integrity Index has now exposed how institutions are gaming publishing metrics. Ranking agencies (unfortunately even NIRF) are incentivising this behaviour. Inaction from our regulatory bodies only makes

Inheritance tax hovers around 50% for Japan/korea & 30%-40% in Europe. None in India, one of the most unequal countries. "A 2% wealth tax & a 33% inheritance tax on just the top 1%..could fetch Rs.12.1 lakh crores". Prof R. Ramakumar on inheritance tax. archive.ph/i2jYz

Today on #FathersDay, let's talk about what American dads actually want.  New polling from Paid Leave for All shows dads across party lines support care policies - because they want to be the best providers they can be. 1/7 🧵 f.mtr.cool/ljyxlqizvk

Most of the Western press seems fundamentally unable to call out Netanyahu’s regime for what it is. This editorial in The Hindu does. ROGUE NATION: How Israel has pushed West Asia into a security abyss with brazenly illegal, reckless and dangerous actions thehindu.com/opinion/editor…