Staff at a bank in Uttar Pradesh has been blamed for allowing termites to eat their way through banknotes. The insects are believed to have chewed their way through notes worth some Rs 1 crore. “The branch management has been found guilty of laxity due to which the notes were …
There is a good deal of ill-informed enthusiasm about “conditional cash transfers” (CCT) among Indian policy makers, based on a superficial understanding of the Latin American experience. In Mexico, Brazil, and other pioneers of this approach, conditional cash transfers were developed to bring a fringe of poor households into the …
As I write this piece, the finance minister has dispatched the Union Budget 2011. The press is busy reflecting the views of business and industry lobbies, as they quibble over duty exemptions, insist on financial stimulus and other incentives, and cry for big-ticket reform—foreign direct investment in retail and insurance. …
The Indian economy this year (2010-11) has been characterized by robust economic growth and steady fiscal consolidation. Inflation continues to be high even though it has come down markedly from where it was at the start of the fiscal year. There are structural challenges that face, concerning economic governance, efficiency …
The State Finance Commission, although a technical and quasijudicial constitutional entity like the Union Finance Commission, has to help local governments plan for economic development and deliver social justice and public services at the local level. This article evaluates the history of the performance of SFCs in general and shows …
The Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission adopted a reform-linked funding approach, the culmination of two decades of active debate and experimentation in the urban development sector. Yet, progress of both fund utilisation and reforms under the programme has been tardy. As a second phase of the mission is planned, …
This report analyzes the corporate governance and strategic approaches of 40 of the world’s largest banks to the challenges and opportunities posed by climate change. This report is designed as a benchmarking tool that highlights climate change best practices within the financial sector. It employs a “Climate Change Governance Checklist” …
