Unshackling India

Unshackling India Book PDF/Epub Download

As India enters its seventy-fifth year of independence, conventional policy is unlikely to combat the breadth of its economic challenges. Across a range of areas-human capital, technology, agriculture, finance, trade, public service delivery and more-new ideas must now be on the table. The COVID-19 pandemic has not only cost India many lives and livelihoods, it has also exposed major structural weaknesses in the economy. A huge farm and jobs crisis, rising and massive inequalities, tepid investment growth, and chronic banking sector challenges have plagued the economy, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. It has also exposed the limitations of the Indian state, which tries to control too much-and ends up stifling the economy and the inherent energies of its young population. Climate change is no longer a distant threat, while disruptive technology has huge implications for India's demographic dividend. In addition, the dangerous lurch towards majoritarianism will cast its shadow on India's pursuit of prosperity for all. Unshackling India examines the question: Can India use the next twenty-five years, when it will reach the hundredth year of independence, to restructure not only its economy but rejuvenate its democratic energy and unshackle its potential-to become a genuinely developed economy by 2047? The book argues that India can foster a prosperous and inclusive economy if it sets its mind to it, acknowledges the hard truths, and lays out the clear choices and new ideas India must adopt towards that end.

Alternative Futures Book PDF/Epub Download

A remarkable, first-ever collection of 35 essays on India's future, by a diverse set of authors - activists, researchers, media practitioners, those who have influenced policies and those working at the grassroots. This book brings together scenarios of an India that is politically and socially egalitarian, radically democratic, economically sustainable and equitable, and socio-culturally diverse and harmonious. Alternative Futures: India Unshackled covers a wide range of issues, organized under four sections. It explores ecological futures including environmental governance, biodiversity conservation, water and energy. Next, it envisions political futures including those of democracy and power, law, ideology, and India's role in the globe. A number of essays then look at economic futures, including agriculture, pastoralism, industry, crafts, villages and cities, localization, markets, transportation and technology. Finally, it explores socio-cultural futures, encompassing languages, learning and education, knowledge, health, sexuality and gender, and marginalized sections like dalits, adivasis, and religious minorities. Introductory and concluding essays tie these diverse visions together. Most essays include both futuristic scenarios and present initiatives that demonstrate the possibility of such futures. At a time when India faces increasing polarization along parochial, physical and mental boundaries, these essays provide a breath of fresh air and hope in the grounded possibilities for an alternative, decentralized, eco-culturally centred future. The essays range from the dreamy-eyed to the hard-headed, from the provocative to the gently persuasive. This book would hold appeal for a wide range of readers - youth, academics, development professionals, policy makers, government officials, activists, people's movements, media persons, business persons - concerned about the current state of India and the world, and willing to engage critically in the collective search for a better future.

Sanghi Who Never Went To A Shakha Book PDF/Epub Download

This is the journey of a person who hated the word ‘Sanghi’ but ended up happily adopting it as a label. Rahul Roushan shot to fame around 2009–10 as the ‘Pagal Patrakar’, the pseudonym he used while writing for Faking News. Back then he was seen just as a founder-editor of the news satire website with no special interest in politics or ideology. The first time Rahul Roushan was called a Sanghi, he felt deeply offended. After all, he held a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Patna University, a post-graduate diploma in journalism from IIMC in New Delhi, an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad and was a self-made media entrepreneur. Sanghi literally means someone who is a member of the right-wing RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) or its affiliates, but the ‘liberals’ use the term liberally to deride those who differ with their political and ideological stand, or those who wear Hinduism on their sleeves. This book analyses why Hindutva as an ideology is no longer anathema and what brought about this change. Why did a country that was ruled for decades by people espousing Nehruvian secularism suddenly began to align with the ‘communal politics’ of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)? The book is the story of this transformation. This is not an autobiography, though it could read like one in parts. It is not even a collection of intellectual essays, though it could read like one in parts. It is the retelling of some historical events and how those events impacted the journey of Rahul Roushan and countless people like him. The book looks at factors like education, media, technology and obviously, electoral politics, which played a key role in this transformation.

Better to Have Gone Book PDF/Epub Download

Named a Best Book of the Year by The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, CNN, New Statesman, Air Mail, and more A “haunting and elegant” (The Wall Street Journal) story about love, faith, the search for utopia—and the often devastating cost of idealism. It’s the late 1960s, and two lovers converge on an arid patch of earth in South India. John Walker is the handsome scion of a powerful East Coast American family. Diane Maes is a beautiful hippie from Belgium. They have come to build a new world—Auroville, an international utopian community for thousands of people. Their faith is strong, the future bright. So how do John and Diane end up dying two decades later, on the same day, on a cracked concrete floor in a thatch hut by a remote canyon? This is the mystery Akash Kapur sets out to solve in Better to Have Gone, and it carries deep personal resonance: Diane and John were the parents of Akash’s wife, Auralice. Akash and Auralice grew up in Auroville; like the rest of their community, they never really understood those deaths. In 2004, Akash and Auralice return to Auroville from New York, where they have been living with John’s family. As they reestablish themselves in the community, along with their two sons, they must confront the ghosts of those distant deaths. Slowly, they come to understand how the tragic individual fates of John and Diane intersected with the collective history of their town. “A riveting account of human aspiration and folly taken to extremes” (The Boston Globe), Better to Have Gone probes the underexplored yet universal idea of utopia and portrays in vivid detail the daily life of one such community. Richly atmospheric and filled with remarkable characters, spread across time and continents, this is narrative writing of the highest order—a “gripping…compelling…[and] heartbreaking story, deeply researched and lucidly told” (The New York Times Book Review).

More News Is Good News Book PDF/Epub Download

Television news in India in the 1980s meant Doordarshan till NDTV came along and changed things forever. Beginning with a half-hour show on Doordarshan, The World This Week, in 1988, NDTV went from strength to strength. In 1995, it aired India's first-ever private news broadcast, with Prannoy Roy's announcement - 'It's eight o'clock and this is The News Tonight coming to you live' - marking a paradigm shift in news media in the country. It then went on to become an independent broadcaster in 2003.For over twenty-five years, the name NDTV has been synonymous with news and credible reporting in India. It is a pioneer in Indian TV journalism, breaking new ground and creating a whole industry. More News Is Good News records this phenomenal journey through the experiences of reporters, anchors, editors, camerapersons and producers, many of whom are now household names, including Prannoy Roy, Vikram Chandra, Ravish Kumar, Barkha Dutt, Sonia Singh, Sreenivasan Jain, Vishnu Som, Nidhi Razdan, Maya Mirchandani, Rajdeep Sardesai and Shekhar Gupta, among others. In the process, it provides a ringside view of the unshackling of the economy and the media, the dilemmas involved in reporting wars and natural disasters, the frontlines and the fault lines that defined the country, news coverage that morphed into nationwide public campaigns and altered the way we respond to the world around us.In the telling of these stories which reflect the countless realities of a changing nation, More News Is Good News also charts the fascinating evolution of news television in independent India over a quarter century.

Britannia Unchained Book PDF/Epub Download

Britain is at a cross-roads; from the economy, to the education system, to social mobility, Britain must learn the rules of the 21st century, or face a slide into mediocrity. Brittania Unchained travels around the world, exploring the nations that are triumphing in this new age, seeking lessons Britain must implement to carve out a bright future.

The Great Disappointment Book PDF/Epub Download

As the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government completes its current term ahead of the General Elections 2019, it is time to evaluate its performance, specifically in terms of its management of the economy. This book is a critical assessment of five years of the brand of economics Prime Minister Narendra Modi has championed, often referred to as 'Modinomics'. Brought into power with the biggest political mandate in almost three decades, did the NDA government succeed in gainfully transforming India's economic trajectory or did it squander a once-in-a-generation opportunity? The book conjectures it is the latter, and analyses why the Modi government's stewardship of the economy is a 'great disappointment'.

Demographics Unravelled Book PDF/Epub Download

Discover what demographics can tell us about the economy, markets, and the future In Demographics Unravelled, renowned Macro-Demographics expert Amlan Roy delivers an insightful and timely exploration of the impact that “people characteristics” have on national economies. Considering factors like gender, race, migrant status, family background, and education, the author delves deeply into a subject that drives market behavior and economic variables, including growth, debt, inflation, employment, and productivity. These have national and international policy implications. In this one-of-a-kind book, you’ll discover: Why the study of demographics is the hidden key to understanding economic growth, asset prices, and capital flows How to use detailed demographics to forecast future scenarios in economics, socioeconomics, geopolitics, and the environment The short-, medium-, and long-term effects of consumer and worker behavior How understanding demographics is key to understanding health, pensions, migration, sustainability and social policies. It is intimately linked to the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN—Gender, Climate, Poverty and Inequality Perfect for institutional investors, insurance professionals, economists, and business leaders, Demographics Unravelled will also earn a place in the libraries of academics and students studying a variety of economic disciplines and seeking a one-stop and in-depth discussion of demographics-driven macroeconomic effects.

The Struggle And The Promise Book PDF/Epub Download

'What is India's future? I deeply believe in India's promise, in our potential for great achievement. I am also old enough to appreciate our ability to snatch failure from the jaws of success.' THE PROMISE: Our diverse culture has something for everyone. Our young population is thirsty for education and achievement. And a strong private sector is our engine of growth. We can lead the world in the future. THE STRUGGLE: We struggle to create a business-friendly environment. We lag in innovation. Education, public health and quality of jobs demand attention. Our governments control some things too much and neglect others. How can the government, citizens and firms turn our struggle into promise and enable India to lead? How can we fix things by learning from best practices elsewhere? How can we ensure openness, inclusivity and innovation? How can independent institutions make up for low state capacity? How can our culture deliver leadership? In The Struggle and the Promise, Naushad Forbes answers these and other critical questions concerning India's progress. He provides a logical, actionable blueprint for getting the balance right between industry, institutions and policy. Backed by rigorous research and copious data, here's a book that shows how to fulfil India's potential.

Uncle Swami Book PDF/Epub Download

Within hours of the attacks on the World Trade Center, misdirected assaults on Sikhs and other South Asians flared on streets across the nation, serving as harbingers of a more suspicious, less discerning, and increasingly fearful world view that would drastically change ideas of belonging and acceptance in America. Weaving together distinct strands of recent South Asian immigration to the United States, Uncle Swami creates a richly textured analysis of the systems and sentiments behind shifting notions of cultural identity in a post 9/11 world. Vijay Prashad continues the conversation sparked by his celebrated work The Karma of Brown Folk and confronts the experience of migration across an expanse of generations and class divisions, from the birth of political activism among second generation immigrants to the meteoric rise of South Asian American politicians in Republican circles to the migrant workers who suffer in the name of American capitalism. A powerful new indictment of American imperialism at the dawn of the twenty-first century, Uncle Swami restores a diasporic community to its full-fledged complexity, beyond model minorities and the specters of terrorism.

Policymaker s Journal Book PDF/Epub Download

This book charts the course of Kaushik Basu’s career over seven years, as he moved out of the cloisters of academe to the frenetic world of policymaking, first in India as Chief Economic Adviser to the Indian Government and after that as Chief Economist at the World Bank in Washington. The Indian years were a period of high inflation, growth challenges (as the global financial crisis arrived in India), and also a remarkable growth recovery story, with India moving past China’s GDP growth rate. There were corruption scandals breaking, causing widespread street protests, a lot of late-night decision-making, which one knew would rock the stock market the next day, and getting to know politicians who were outstanding as statesmen in the midst of all this, and also many who were not. The World Bank years weren’t that close to actual policymaking, but nevertheless breath-taking in their scope. They ranged from interacting with policymakers in tiny remote countries like Samoa to gigantic nations with comparable heft, such as China. It entailed sitting down with leading researchers to compute and announce global numbers on extreme poverty and rankings on how easy it is to do business in different countries (fully aware that there would be calls from irate finance ministers as soon as these were published). And there was the handling of politics within the World Bank, which could actually be as enjoyable as any global economic problem! This book is a revised version of the diary that Kaushik Basu kept for seven years. Revised because he often wrote the diary in a hurry at the day’s or even week’s end. He has now inserted some reflections in retrospect, without altering any descriptions of what actually happened.

Aavarana Book PDF/Epub Download

Because my questions made Amir uncomfortable, he pronounced talaq just like that on the wife who had abandoned everything for him because his religion gives him that privilege. Where do I now stand, sir? Do you have any solutions for me?' Lakshmi, a rebellious, free-spirited and intelligent film-maker, breaks ties with her staunchly Gandhi an father to marry Amir, the man she loves. She even agrees reluctantly to Amir's request that she convert to Islam, as a formality and change her name to Razia. However, she is shocked to discover that her husband is not the open-minded, progressive individual he claimed to be. For after marriage, Amir takes his family's side in trying to force her to follow the more rigorous tenets of their faith. This sets her off on a personal journey into India's history to uncover the many layers of religion, caste and creed. Her quest leads her to the many parallels in the narratives between the past and the present and she gradually finds that though much has changed in Indian society over the centuries, much remains the same. The second historical novel by celebrated Kannada author S.L. Bhyrappa, translated for the first time into English by Sandeep Balakrishna, Aavarana: The Veil raises pertinent and searching questions about religion, liberalism and identity and highlights the importance of unshackling oneself from the bonds of false knowledge.

India Emerging Book PDF/Epub Download

India, like most democratic developing nations, is prone to populist politics. In the search of votes, politicians look for popular solutions with mass appeal. Some popular solutions benefit the poor, some hurt the economy. Poor economics leads to falling numbers. Falling numbers get statistically captured as economic data. And, the impact of such economic data is immense. This data can lift or crash currency markets, stock markets, affect credit ratings, fuel inflation, affect new investments and even result in mass layoffs. However, there is always a story behind the data. These stories are guided mostly by executive decisions. Some decisions are far-reaching and beneficial to the masses, some cater to political vote banks, some are guided by increasing activism, some serve the need for social justice, some are aimed at environmental protection, while some are simply driven by the greed of power or wealth. This is the story of every regime. The book narrates this compelling data story in a layman's language. Even where data is wrong it leaves behind a tell-tale mark of anomalies, which trips the economy sooner than later. Fudged, incorrect or lazily collected data is worse than genuine but unimpressive data as you do not know what to correct. India Emerging thus captures this dialogue on the pros and cons of economic and political decisions that can be understood by the common voter who is neither an economist nor an academician.

Shadow City Book PDF/Epub Download

For most Indians, Kabul is a city that is near, yet far-familiar, yet unknown. When Taran N. Khan arrived in Kabul in the spring of 2006, five years after the overthrow of the Taliban regime, she was earnestly cautioned never to walk. Her instincts compelled her to do the opposite: to take that precarious first step and enter the life of the city with the unique, tactile intimacy that comes from being a walker. She didn't stop until 2013, when she returned to India. In Shadow City, Taran N. Khan paints a lyrical, personal, and meditative portrait of a city we know primarily in terms of conflict and peace. As a Muslim woman raised in a small town in India, Taran discovered that she had access to parts of Kabul uncharted by travellers before her. The result reads like an elegiac prose map of the city, rich with surprises-from the glitter of wedding halls that shine like a bizarre version of Las Vegas; to the mental health hospital where women are abandoned and isolated but exist in a rare space of freedom and solitude; to the bookseller behind The Bookseller of Kabul, who sued Åsne Seierstad for her portrayal of him and then published the rebuttal which he displays proudly in his shop window.

Towards New India Book PDF/Epub Download

Ever since receiving a historic mandate in May 2014; the NDA Government under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has made a lot of structural changes in governance and is scripting India’s economic turn around and is surely making India a formidable superpower of the world. ‘New India 2022’ is a vision and dream of Shri Modi for transforming India into a Clean India; Poverty Free India; Corruption Free India; Terrorism Free India; Communalism Free India; Casteism Free India by 2022. This book focuses on several important aspects having direct or indirect impact on New India movement like economy; banking; social issues; women empowerment; national security etc. wherein subject experts have written on important issues on how to take India forward. Collection of well researched articles which will pave the path of NEW INDIA.

What is Slavery to Me Book PDF/Epub Download

A study of slave memory in South Africa using feminist, postcolonial and memory studies Much has been made about South Africa's transition from histories of colonialism, slavery and apartheid. 'Memory' features prominently in the country's reckoning with its pasts. While there has been an outpouring of academic essays, anthologies and other full-length texts which study this transition, most have focused on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). What is slavery to me? is the first full-length study of slave memory in the South African context, and examines the relevance and effects of slave memory for contemporary negotiations of South African gendered and racialised identities. It draws from feminist, postcolonial and memory studies and is therefore interdisciplinary in approach. It reads memory as one way of processing this past, and interprets a variety of cultural, literary and filmic texts to ascertain the particular experiences in relation to slave pasts being fashioned, processed and disseminated. Much of the material surveyed across disciplines attributes to memory, or 'popular history making', a dialogue between past and present whilst ascribing sense to both the eras and their relationship. In this sense then, memory is active, entailing a personal relationship with the past which acts as mediator of reality on a day to day basis. The projects studies various negotiations of raced and gendered identities in creative and other public spaces in contemporary South Africa, by being particularly attentive to the encoding of consciousness about the country's slave past. This book extends memory studies in South Africa, provokes new lines of inquiry, and develops new frameworks through which to think about slavery and memory in South Africa.

Handbook of Blockchain Digital Finance and Inclusion Volume 2 Book PDF/Epub Download

Handbook of Blockchain, Digital Finance, and Inclusion, Volume 2: ChinaTech, Mobile Security, and Distributed Ledger emphasizes technological developments that introduce the future of finance. Descriptions of recent innovations lay the foundations for explorations of feasible solutions for banks and startups to grow. The combination of studies on blockchain technologies and applications, regional financial inclusion movements, advances in Chinese finance, and security issues delivers a grand perspective on both changing industries and lifestyles. Written for students and practitioners, it helps lead the way to future possibilities. Explains the practical consequences of both technologies and economics to readers who want to learn about subjects related to their specialties Encompasses alternative finance, financial inclusion, impact investing, decentralized consensus ledger and applied cryptography Provides the only advanced methodical summary of these subjects available today

Becoming Free Becoming Black Book PDF/Epub Download

Shows that the law of freedom, not slavery, determined the way that race developed over time in three slave societies.

India that is Bharat Book PDF/Epub Download

India, That Is Bharat, the first book of a comprehensive trilogy, explores the influence of European 'colonial consciousness' (or 'coloniality'), in particular its religious and racial roots, on Bharat as the successor state to the Indic civilisation and the origins of the Indian Constitution. It lays the foundation for its sequels by covering the period between the Age of Discovery, marked by Christopher Columbus' expedition in 1492, and the reshaping of Bharat through a British-made constitution-the Government of India Act of 1919. This includes international developments leading to the founding of the League of Nations by Western powers that tangibly impacted this journey. Further, this work also traces the origins of seemingly universal constructs such as 'toleration', 'secularism' and 'humanism' to Christian political theology. Their subsequent role in subverting the indigenous Indic consciousness through a secularised and universalised Reformation, that is, constitutionalism, is examined. It also puts forth the concept of Middle Eastern coloniality, which preceded its European variant and allies with it in the context of Bharat to advance their shared antipathy towards the Indic worldview. In order to liberate Bharat's distinctive indigeneity, 'decoloniality' is presented as a civilisational imperative in the spheres of nature, religion, culture, history, education, language and, crucially, in the realm of constitutionalism.

Essence of the Upanishads Book PDF/Epub Download

Essence of the Upanishads - A Key to Indian Spirituality (Revised edition of Dialogue with Death, with new series preface and introduction - 19 new pages from transcripts of Easwaran's talks) Easwaran shows how the Katha Upanishad can help us understand our lives today Easwaran takes one of India's classic wisdom texts, the Katha Upanishad, and explains how it embraces all the key ideas of Indian spirituality within the context of a powerful mythic quest - the story of a young hero who ventures into the land of death in search of immortality. Illustrating the insights of the Katha through analogies and everyday examples, Easwaran shows how these ancient teachings help us gain a deeper understanding of our world and ourselves today.

The Gated Republic Book PDF/Epub Download

Seventy years since it became a republic, India has come a long way. But it is still failing on some key fronts. Piped drinking water for all continues to be a pipe dream; homes and businesses are haunted by power outages; the lack of proper primary health care renders the poorest more vulnerable; millions of children coming out of schools lack rudimentary skills; and the security of lives and enterprises, a source of great anxiety, depends on private contractors. Indians are seceding from dependence on the government for these most basic of services and are investing in the pay-and-plug economy. They have internalized the incapacity of the state to deliver these and are opting for private providers despite the costs. But can India sustain private republics amidst public failures in a landscape scarred by social and economic fault lines? What are the possible solutions? Can government reinvent itself? The Gated Republic presents an interrogative view of the history and future of private India.