Business & Economy

Amartya, Meghnad clash over idea of Indian nation-state 

What is India News Service, Tuesday, 4 January 2005, 2000 hrs IST


Nobel laureate Prof Amartya Sen and Lord Meghnad Desai, Professor Emeritus, London School of Economics, on Monday disagreed on whether India was a conglomerate of different nationalities, with the former arguing that the concept of an Indian nation state existed since the ancient times. 

Lord Desai traced the fragmentation of Indian politics to historically low rates of economic growth. \93Because the rate of growth was low in the first 30 years since Independence and the planning strategy capital intensive, poverty did not go down and employment did not grow\94, he said while speaking at the national seminar on \91Development and Nationhood: An Indian Perspective\92, organised by Ficci and Sri Ram Centre for Industrial Research (SRC) here.

As literacy levels continued to stagnate and health care and social development programmes received lip service, the marginalised sections of society threw up a new breed of leaders whose sole purpose was to capture the State. 

\93This rapacious class gave back to its cluster of vote banks a share of the State spoils, ensuring in the process, the forceful emergence of a third force in Indian politics\94, Lord Desai argued.

Describing the reassertion of regional parties as the direct outcome of social and spatial disparities, Lord Desai said this sowed the seeds of India becoming a multi-national polity. The primary loyalty of leaders of these political parties lay with regional aspirations, the notion being that prosperity in States and regions would lead to national prosperity, he added. 

Govt looks for clean-fuel breather: The petroleum ministry is likely to approach the Supreme Court to extend the April 1 deadline to introduce the next grade of cleaner vehicular fuels in the country. 

Economy must grow at 10 pc, says Kalam: President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam today said it was necessary for the Indian economy to grow at the rate of 10 per cent on a sustained basis for over a decade for the uplift of 260 million people living below the poverty line. 

Transport Congress seeks simplified tax regime: The All India Motor Transport Congress today called for simplification of tax regime besides changes in the legal framework governing the road transport sector.

Despite tsunami, growth to be 6.5 pc:  The World Bank said the Indian economy was expected to clock a growth rate of 6.5 per cent in the current fiscal, despite the devastation caused by the tsunami disaster. \93Our estimate is 6.5 per cent growth for this fiscal. We don\92t yet know the economic impact of tsunami. 

A-I floats bids for 4 leased freighters: In the wake of its board decision recently to take freighters on lease for separate cargo operations, Air-India (A-I) has issued tenders to induct four freighter aircraft on lease by March to start operations from April.

Pay order for Reliance Info: The Supreme Court today rejected Reliance\92s plea that it did not have money to pay BSNL and could only give a bank guarantee.

Polymer prices cut: Reliance Industries Ltd today slashed prices of fibre intermediates, polymers and polyester across the board.