Issues facing India

Corruption
Dependence on
Agriculture
Business Environment
Corrupt Media
Unemployment
Inefficient Police
Quality of Education
Terrorism
Naxalism
China
Infrastructure
Over Regulation!
Crimes against women
Environmental
degradation
Ineffective system of
Justice
Population growth
Poverty
Votebank Politics
Slow Judiciary
Political control over
Govt. Policies
Poor Business
Environment
Corruption
Ailing
Judicial system
Poor Educational
standards
Unemplyment
Poor Agricultural
Productivity
Poor Implementation
of Govt. Policies
Status of Women
Poverty
As things stand...
Agenda

Political Leadership
Business Environment
Poverty
Education
Law and Order
Global ranks

Per capita GDP: 141
Human Development Index: 136
Ease of doing business Index: 134
Corruption Perception Index: 94
4th most dangerous place for women (after
Afghanistan, Congo, and Pakistan)

Political Leadership


India grows despite and not
because of the Government!


Political Leadership

Control over executive and judiciary
Populism inherent to Democracy
Corruption
Electoral System
Coalition Dharma
Control over Executive and Judiciary

Civil Services
CBI
Vigilance
Police
Issues with Judiciary
Populism inherent to Democracy
Corruption: Can it be solved?
Judicial & Police reforms and Independence of the
Anti-corruption wings
Privatization
RTI
Use of IT
Initiative by private players
Income tax reforms
Simplification of the laws, lesser role of beureaucracy.
Protection to whistle blowers
Political Leadership: Electoral System
Coalition Dharma
Ideological differences fractured policy debate
Blackmail
Uncertain fate of the govt
Representation of People Bill, 1951
that should be "torn and thrown out".
Representation of People Bill, 1951
that should be "torn and thrown out".
Business Environment
Ease of DB 2013 rank
Doing Business (Overall Ranking) 132
Starting a Business 173
Dealing with Construction permits 182
Trading across Borders 127
Enforcing contracts 184
Resolving Insolvency 116
Growth rates of India and China

Growth rates of China, S. Korea, Taiwan, India
Infrastructure growth



Poor Infrastructure

Growth rates of China, S. Korea, Taiwan, India
Infrastructure growth



Slow Reform Process

Refrain from touching politically sensitive areas
Land Acquisition New LARR Policy, 2013
Labour Laws
Tax rates - GST
FDI in Multibrand Retail
Divergent State Policies
Example: West Bengal / Gujarat / Kerala / Maharashtra
/ MP / UP / Bihar
Difference in the style of functioning leads to different
growth trajectories.
Business-politician Nexus

Business control over
policy making, media,
implementation etc.

Creates
Bureaucratic Inefficiency


Scale of implementation
Performance measurement metrices
Political control
Ill conceived policies
Corruption

Business Environment: Government
Initiative

New R&R Policy
Thrust areas/sectors, priority sector lending
Creating infrastructure through PPP, BOT, FDI etc.
Tax holidays, single window clearance
Micro-finance

Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and
Resettlement Policy, 2013

Heavily loaded in favour of land owners
Huge mark up to the historical market price to
determine compensation amounts
Numerous entitlements to landowners including
permanent job and upfront payment
Prohibiting the use of fertile agricultural land (beyond
5% per district) may be counter productive.




Socialism is the destiny of any society. But
it must pass through Capitalism first.
Agenda

Poverty
Business Environment
Education
Political Leadership
Law and Order
Poverty
Population below poverty line: 29.8%
World Hunger Index Rank: 94 (of 119)
43% Indian children under 5 are underweight and
58% stunted as of 2008 - the highest in the world

Sector Employment
(%)
Share of GDP
(%)
Primary 51 17
Secondary 22 26
Tertiary 27 57
Sector wise contribution to GDP
Govt Initiative: Subsidies
Issues:
Opportunity cost of money
PDS losses
Market distortions
Inclusion/exclusion errors
Environmental impact
Money granted by the
Government to keep down
the prices of commodities.
Subsidies in India: Alternative

Direct Benefits Transfer Scheme
Bolsa Familia Programme

Implementation
UID Programme
Aadhaar Integration, ERP Integration and
Integration with nodal bank and payment
gateways
Subsidies in India: Alternative

Direct Benefits Transfer Scheme
Conditional Cash Transfer
Bolsa Familia Programme
Implementation
UID Programme
Aadhaar Integration, ERP Integration and
Integration with nodal bank and payment gateways
Direct transfer of Subsidy through state govt
followed by UID based benefit transfer to the
targets

DBTS: Risks

Proper Identification of beneficiaries
Addressing the liquidity constraint
Price indexing of the subsidies
Controlling the overall scale of expenditure
Black marketing


Govt Initiative: Food Security Bill

Provision of subsidized food grain for 67% of the
population (75% rural and 50% urban population to be
covered)
To provide Rice, wheat and coarse cereal at Rs. 3, 2 and
1 respectively.


The most optimistic estimates put the cost of the scheme
to Rs. 1.3 lakh crore per annum (11% of the net
expenditure)
Food Security Bill: Critique

Do we need it?
How are we going to fund it?
Impact on other items?
Can we deliver?
Isn't it too obvious?


Govt Initiative: Food Security Bill

Political implications
Public distribution system
Cross Subsidy


Govt Initiative: MGREGS
"the largest and most
ambitious social
security and public
works programme in
the world"

Issues
Net value add
Impact on the job market
Impact on the budget

Poverty: Summary

Poverty and Unemployment go hand in hand.
Govt. schemes for poverty alleviation focus on
creating jobs & subsidies in agri & other produces.
Govt schemes are marred by ill-conception, scale of
implementation and corruption.


Education
Literacy rate: 74% (82% for men and 65% for women)
(world average: 84%)
Only 15% of Indian students reach high school, and
just 7% graduate
Consistent share of at least 3% in the budget spend
since freedom.
Access to Education
Right to Education Act

Education is the fundamental right of every child
between the ages of 6 and 14
Private schools to reserve 25% of seats to
children from poor families
It prohibits all unrecognized schools from practice
No donation and no interview for admission
No child shall be held back, expelled, or required
to pass a board examination until the completion
of elementary education.

Quality of Education
Role of govt bodies (UGC, AICTE, MCI etc)
Teacher student ratio
Balance between acads and extra-curricular activities
Rote based teaching
Skill development
75% of technical & 85% of general graduates are unemployable by
industries. (WSJ)
No Indian university appeared in top 200 (including the IITs). (QS
World University Rankings (sept 2011))
The number of students writing CAT 2013 is 2 Lakh (for 3500 seats),
GATE 2013 is 12 lakhs (for less than 500 seats), over 5 lakh students
for IITJEE 2013, 7.5 lakh for NEET 2013 etc.
Education: Important issues

Fee and Funding
Pvt participation and degree of control
Attracting foreign universities
Limited job opportunities post graduation
Adult Education Literacy vs Education

Education: Summary

The govt has spent a lot of money on Literacy but to
not much avail.
The policy is misdirected Education and not Literacy
should be the target.
Focus on employability and alternately creating more
employment opportunities is the ultimate solution to
the problem.
Agenda

Poverty
Business Environment
Education
Corruption
Law and Order
Law and Order

Police
Judiciary
Status of women

Police

System of policing is governed by "Police Act of 1861"
Police-population ratio of 120 against global avg. of
270 per one lakh

An average of 50 transfers every month in a state that has around 350 IAS
officers...43 IPS officers have been transferred 40 times in their career.
the bureaucrats should work in close coordination with party leaders or face the
music.
- State of affairs in UP
Read article A hell hole for Civil Servants by Tehelka
Police Reform
1.Minimum tenures for senior police offices (Station
Inspector upwards).
2.Setting up of a body to decide transfers, postings,
promotions and other service related matters of police
officers.
3.Police Complaints Authority at state level to inquire into
public complaints against police officers.
4.Increase in the funding/budgetary allocation for the Police
department.
5.Separate the investigation and law and order functions of
the police.
6.Greater integration of various arms of investigation.
Judiciary

More than 3.7 Crore cases pending at various levels of
courts (district, high and Supreme)
High pendency levels at the quasi judicial forums (like
MRTP commission, consumer forums, Company Law Board, Administrative
tribunals, taxation tribunals etc).

Justice delayed is justice denied.

Justice should not only be delivered, it should also be seen as
being delivered.

Judicial Reforms
Simplification of the court procedures
Service of summon, recording of evidence, arguments,
decision
Suitable changes to categories of laws with high pendency
Dishonored cheques, Motor Accident, Land acquisition,
maintenance to dependents
Compounding/amnesty schemes for penalty related
offences
Alternative dispute resolution mechanism
Lok Adalat, pre-litigative redressal, expert tribunals and
regulators,
Fast-track courts
Use of IT
Status of Women

Foetecide (sex ratio: 941; 914 for children below 6
years),
Discrimination (male vs female literacy rates)
A crime against a women is committed every three
minutes, a women is raped every 29 minutes, a dowry
death occurs every 77 minutes - National Crime
Records Bureau
Causes
Social: Justice and policing, Mindset (Patriarchy, Tradition,
Marriage)
Economic: Lack of job opportunities, Limited family income
Biological: Nature of work, maternity, self-defense

Government Initiative
Woman Reservation Bill (pending for over 4 years)
The sexual harassment of Women at workplace Act,
2013
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act,
2005
Justice JS Verma Committee report and Nirbhaya Act
(Criminal Law Amendment Act, 2013)
Women empowerment through Self Help Groups,
Microfinance, reservation in education etc.

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