Managing Editor, Down To Earth. He has been associated with the fortnightly since 1997 and has written extensively on rural affairs and development matters
No more climate neutral
Climate change entering the realm of formal economic policy-making is an acceptance of the crisis and a warning
Cashing in on India’s demographic dividend
India will have the demographic dividend for another decade. It takes massive skill update to translate this advantage into a development bonanza
Neocolonial Raj has taken root in India
Inequality has been widening rapidly in the country since the 1990s
Nearly 56 million Indians joined back agriculture in 3 yrs: Is it a good sign or an indicator of an economic distress?
The “India Employment Report 2024” by the ILO says the COVID-19 pandemic reversed a national employment transition from farm to non-…
Much ado about nothing
How much does government support add to household income?
Less farms and farmers
The agricultural world is undergoing a historic change: the number of farms coming down sharply while size is increasing. Does it imply …
Debunking K-shaped recovery: Why the SBI’s new report gets it all wrong about India’s economic growth
The research of SBI is not representative of the Indian economy; it also pedals a newly-destined ‘narrative’
Advance warnings
The agriculture sector is estimated to grow at 1.8 per cent in 2023-24—a steep decline from the 4 per cent growth in financial year 2022-…
Vote for 2024
Record number of countries will go to elections at a time when young populations’ trust on democracy is waning
Child poverty a global concern
It is time poverty alleviation policies and programmes get child-centric, to lay a solid foundation for a future generation that is healthy and …
Socials of the pandemic
For generations, and also in the immediate future, the COVID-19 pandemic will be remembered for this: how the world lived up to a global crisis?
Employment enigma: India’s high rate of self-employment gets reflected as a decrease in unemployment rate
The number of self-employed has increased in India, a trend usually seen in poor and developing countries with low per capita income
(Electoral) promises to keep
Political parties have released ‘promises’ in the run-up to elections in 5 states; Will voters buy them?
Chandrayaan-3: Science on the political agenda
While science is always definitive, its use is a political decision
An old elegy for a new season
Assurance of a normal monsoon doesn’t decide agricultural performance anymore
Busting the myth of population rise threat
Global population growth has been less than 1% since 2020
Food prices are expected to rise more, and cost may be too heavy to bear for many
Climate crisis may undo last century’s achievement in curbing extreme hunger
COVID-19 will now be an endemic pandemic
Eventually, an endemic COVID-19 will add to the world’s burden of diseases
War-Pandemic: World is poorer now; will double its poverty level on the target year of eradication
Poverty is getting concentrated and chronic in sub-Saharan Africa and rural areas
COVID-19: A generation interrupted
Children born today might be the next development challenge for the world
Out of Africa flashback: Is the world witnessing a migration wave due to lack of water?
Dry spells account for up to one-tenth of the increase in world migration
Cyclones to heat waves to starvation deaths: The Odisha model for survival
It's important to remember what happens when a government lets people die in a disaster
The pandemic has set in place another killer
In face of high food insecurity, more and more people are eating unhealthy
Is the rural economy driving India’s recovery?
Government spending has led to demand growth in rural areas; but what if it comes down?
COVID-19: Developing countries in unprecedented debt situation
Demand for a ‘global debt deal’ picks up