One of great Indian women economist, Dr. Isher Judge Ahluwalia passed away

Today, one of rare and great Indian woman economist Dr. Isher Judge Ahluwalia has passed away.

She was known as multi-personality as professional economist, institution builder and public policy expert. She was internationally well known economist and public policy expert on range of issues from industrial development, urban development, social sectors, etc.

She was one of few economists in India who boldly criticized the economic policies of socialist era which failed miserably by creating poverty and scarcity killing of millions of people.

A decade ago, she wrote column in The Indian Express about case studies of urban issues and challenges which is not only a bottom up approach to read the public policies but also provided a global view upon which she was closely connected and bridged the policy nexus. Later,the articles were put together in book form, which again was most interesting reading.  

Here are few links to news items on her career and achievements over many decades.

Economist Isher Judge Ahluwalia passes away after 10-month battle with brain cancer

Noted economist Isher Judge Ahluwalia, who broke many glass ceilings, dies at 74

Isher Judge Ahluwalia, noted economist and Padma Bhushan awardee, passes away

Padma Bhushan Economist Isher Judge Ahluwalia Dies Aged 74, Punjab CM Mourns Loss

More: 1, 2, 3

Prof S.Ambirajan’s Thoughts on Development Economics

I have new article on forgotten Indian economic thoughts. This one explains the forgotten development economics ideas of Professor S Ambirajan. 

"On the growth of population, Prof Ambirajan firmly believed that “Generally a rapid rise in population accompanies rapid economic development” and “economic development alone can be the effective remedy to the threat of overpopulation.” According to him, “Economic development is but one of the many factors that determine a country’s or a community’s prosperity. Without social betterment and general cultural progress, mere economic development can have no meaning for us.” 

Challenges of Productive Employment Creation in India

I have new article on the institutional governance issues faced by employment sector in India. 

"The COVID-19 pandemic has paved a holistic structure for the implementation of a set of policies and programmes through the States with the help of technologies for reporting systems for all infected persons, tracking them, etc. At the end of the day, some status reports are put out for the public and it helps everybody from global monitoring agencies to the local public to be informed about the status of diseases spread. 

We need a similar or better-improved model through technology-driven governance structure for transparent decision making along with accountability for every other sector, especially the public healthcare system, modernisation of primary health centres, district hospitals, insurance policies of governments, etc. 

Similarly, we need to reinvent the entire social sectors such as the education and skill training sector as well as the labour and employment sector with a more robust mechanism to fulfill the aspirations of youth and educated graduates for finding livelihoods and employment opportunities, and to make their dreams come true in a more blended way. Are our top policymakers paying attention to the ground realities and the dismal situation of the employment sector? Only time will!" 

Human beings are cooperative by nature

 Here is a very interesting interview on new book Human Kind: A hopeful history by historian Rutger Bregman.

I particularly, I like the below Q and A:

In the book, you point a finger at the media for spreading cynicism and highlighting, if not sometimes exaggerating, the worst part of humanity. What are your suggestions for the news industry?

It’s important to make a distinction between the news and journalism. The news is about recent, incidental and sensational events. It’s mostly about exceptions. So if you follow a lot of the news, and you only hear about these exceptions, then at the end of the day you’ll know exactly how the world does not work. And you’ll be quite pessimistic as well. Psychologists have a term for this: "mean world syndrome".

I think it’s important that journalists zoom out, and focus on the bigger, structural forces that govern our lives. I also think it’s important that they are constructive. This means that they don’t just write about the problems, but also about the solutions, and the people who are helping us move forward.

You devote one part of the book to education, how seeing children as responsible and full of potential might actually help them grow. But do you have any tips for parents, on how they can educate children to be more compassionate and less cynical?

Children are born as emphatic and compassionate beings – so you don’t have to teach them generosity, it’s in their nature to be friendly. We know from scientific studies that infants as young as six months old can distinguish right from wrong and have a preference for the good over the bad. I think it’s important to design our education and our schools around that insight, to bring out the best in our kids. So don’t try to teach them to be cynical, but give them the freedom to play and explore.