MY VIEWS IN ECONOMIC TIMES ON WORLD DEVELOPMENT REPORT & ON EVALUATION OF WELFARE PLANS

Economic Times Story on 06.11.12:  2013 World Development Report: India needs to focus on jobs, reform labour laws

Comments of MILAN K SINHA (PATNA)
06 Nov, 2012 08:56 PM

For a country like India which has the largest pool of educated youths , but where jobs are not plenty despite reasonably very good average GDP growth for last 12 years in 21st century, if growth and equity don't go together in our society having massive BPL population and growing number of unemployed persons, there will be large scale discontentment leading to major law and order problem which may threaten the unity and integrity of the nation. We can't allow to have two India in our country at any cost. More over, the existing labour laws must be revisited in view of the changing business models and requirements to make it conducive for ensuring sustainable and inclusive growth of our economy which must also take care of the well being of its labour force, the real wealth creators for the country. Naturally, for this to happen , the issues of governance must be addressed forthwith and the check & balances in the system to be tightened not to offer any chance to any ill- intentioned person to take the system for a ride at any point of time.

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Economic Times Story on 07.11.12: Cabinet to take up real-time evaluation of welfare plans to monitor timely expenditure

Comments of MILAN K SINHA (PATNA)
07 Nov, 2012 06:40 PM

There is no denying the fact that Rs.76000 crore Rural Development Budget, if utilised properly for the target group, the condition of millions of rural poor would definitely change qualitatively. It is very unfortunate that the public money is being swindled by a handful of so-called powerful local persons in connivance with the implementing govt. functionaries depriving the poorest of the poor of their basic needs of living. The Union Rural Development Minister, Jairam Ramesh is right in stressing the idea for having a real-time evaluation through an independent concurrent evaluation mechanism to make welfare schemes more effective. This would surely help curb the large scale organised mal-practices being undertaken at the ground level under the nose of the district/block administration through out the country, may be in varying degrees. Let the proposed mechanism which will comprise an independent organisation, the Concurrent Evaluation Office (CEO) is set up early with a specifically defined role so as to prove itself a real change agent for the disadvantaged rural masses and not another office at the tax payers cost only for namesake with some other motive before the next Lok Sabha elections.

                                                       Will meet again with Open Mind. All the Best.