Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Social Justice Incorporating the Mid-term Appraisal of Eleventh FiveYear Plan--Handout No.16: Please visit the following link
http://www.scribd.com/doc/54031783/2011-GS-Indian-Econ-Handout-16
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Quotable Quotes from Aristotle (May be useful in writing Essays in the MAINS)
No one would choose a friendless existence on condition of having all the other things in the world.
Aristotle
Of all the varieties of virtues, liberalism is the most beloved.
Aristotle
Perfect friendship is the friendship of men who are good, and alike in excellence; for these wish well alike to each other qua good, and they are good in themselves.
Aristotle
Personal beauty is a greater recommendation than any letter of reference.
Aristotle
Piety requires us to honor truth above our friends.
Aristotle
Plato is dear to me, but dearer still is truth.
Aristotle
Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.
Aristotle
Poetry is finer and more philosophical than history; for poetry expresses the universal, and history only the particular.
Aristotle
Politicians also have no leisure, because they are always aiming at something beyond political life itself, power and glory, or happiness.
Aristotle
Probable impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities.
Aristotle
Quality is not an act, it is a habit.
Aristotle
Republics decline into democracies and democracies degenerate into despotisms.
Aristotle
Suffering becomes beautiful when anyone bears great calamities with cheerfulness, not through insensibility but through greatness of mind.
Aristotle
Temperance is a mean with regard to pleasures.
Aristotle
The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.
Aristotle
The aim of the wise is not to secure pleasure, but to avoid pain.
Aristotle
The beginning of reform is not so much to equalize property as to train the noble sort of natures not to desire more, and to prevent the lower from getting more.
Aristotle
The best friend is the man who in wishing me well wishes it for my sake.
Aristotle
The educated differ from the uneducated as much as the living from the dead.
Aristotle
The end of labor is to gain leisure.
Aristotle
Aristotle
Of all the varieties of virtues, liberalism is the most beloved.
Aristotle
Perfect friendship is the friendship of men who are good, and alike in excellence; for these wish well alike to each other qua good, and they are good in themselves.
Aristotle
Personal beauty is a greater recommendation than any letter of reference.
Aristotle
Piety requires us to honor truth above our friends.
Aristotle
Plato is dear to me, but dearer still is truth.
Aristotle
Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.
Aristotle
Poetry is finer and more philosophical than history; for poetry expresses the universal, and history only the particular.
Aristotle
Politicians also have no leisure, because they are always aiming at something beyond political life itself, power and glory, or happiness.
Aristotle
Probable impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities.
Aristotle
Quality is not an act, it is a habit.
Aristotle
Republics decline into democracies and democracies degenerate into despotisms.
Aristotle
Suffering becomes beautiful when anyone bears great calamities with cheerfulness, not through insensibility but through greatness of mind.
Aristotle
Temperance is a mean with regard to pleasures.
Aristotle
The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.
Aristotle
The aim of the wise is not to secure pleasure, but to avoid pain.
Aristotle
The beginning of reform is not so much to equalize property as to train the noble sort of natures not to desire more, and to prevent the lower from getting more.
Aristotle
The best friend is the man who in wishing me well wishes it for my sake.
Aristotle
The educated differ from the uneducated as much as the living from the dead.
Aristotle
The end of labor is to gain leisure.
Aristotle
Quotable Quotes from Aristotle (May be useful in writing Essays in the MAINS)
It is not once nor twice but times without number that the same ideas make their appearance in the world.
Aristotle
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
Aristotle
It is unbecoming for young men to utter maxims.
Aristotle
Jealousy is both reasonable and belongs to reasonable men, while envy is base and belongs to the base, for the one makes himself get good things by jealousy, while the other does not allow his neighbour to have them through envy.
Aristotle
Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.
Aristotle
Man is by nature a political animal.
Aristotle
Men acquire a particular quality by constantly acting in a particular way.
Aristotle
Men are swayed more by fear than by reverence.
Aristotle
Men create gods after their own image, not only with regard to their form but with regard to their mode of life.
Aristotle
Misfortune shows those who are not really friends.
Aristotle
Moral excellence comes about as a result of habit. We become just by doing just acts, temperate by doing temperate acts, brave by doing brave acts.
Aristotle
Most people would rather give than get affection.
Aristotle
Mothers are fonder than fathers of their children because they are more certain they are their own.
Aristotle
My best friend is the man who in wishing me well wishes it for my sake.
Aristotle
Nature does nothing in vain.
Aristotle
No excellent soul is exempt from a mixture of madness.
Aristotle
No great genius has ever existed without some touch of madness.
Aristotle
No notice is taken of a little evil, but when it increases it strikes the eye.
Aristotle
No one loves the man whom he fears.
Aristotle
It is simplicity that makes the uneducated more effective than the educated when addressing popular audiences.
Aristotle
Aristotle
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
Aristotle
It is unbecoming for young men to utter maxims.
Aristotle
Jealousy is both reasonable and belongs to reasonable men, while envy is base and belongs to the base, for the one makes himself get good things by jealousy, while the other does not allow his neighbour to have them through envy.
Aristotle
Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.
Aristotle
Man is by nature a political animal.
Aristotle
Men acquire a particular quality by constantly acting in a particular way.
Aristotle
Men are swayed more by fear than by reverence.
Aristotle
Men create gods after their own image, not only with regard to their form but with regard to their mode of life.
Aristotle
Misfortune shows those who are not really friends.
Aristotle
Moral excellence comes about as a result of habit. We become just by doing just acts, temperate by doing temperate acts, brave by doing brave acts.
Aristotle
Most people would rather give than get affection.
Aristotle
Mothers are fonder than fathers of their children because they are more certain they are their own.
Aristotle
My best friend is the man who in wishing me well wishes it for my sake.
Aristotle
Nature does nothing in vain.
Aristotle
No excellent soul is exempt from a mixture of madness.
Aristotle
No great genius has ever existed without some touch of madness.
Aristotle
No notice is taken of a little evil, but when it increases it strikes the eye.
Aristotle
No one loves the man whom he fears.
Aristotle
It is simplicity that makes the uneducated more effective than the educated when addressing popular audiences.
Aristotle
Quotable Quotes from Aristotle (May be useful in writing Essays in the MAINS)
A constitution is the arrangement of magistracies in a state.
Aristotle
A friend to all is a friend to none.
Aristotle
A great city is not to be confounded with a populous one.
Aristotle
A true friend is one soul in two bodies.
Aristotle
A tyrant must put on the appearance of uncommon devotion to religion. Subjects are less apprehensive of illegal treatment from a ruler whom they consider god-fearing and pious. On the other hand, they do less easily move against him, believing that he has the gods on his side.
Aristotle
All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire.
Aristotle
All men by nature desire knowledge.
Aristotle
All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind.
Aristotle
All virtue is summed up in dealing justly.
Aristotle
Anybody can become angry - that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way - that is not within everybody's power and is not easy.
Aristotle
At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst.
Aristotle
Bad men are full of repentance.
Aristotle
Bashfulness is an ornament to youth, but a reproach to old age.
Aristotle
Both oligarch and tyrant mistrust the people, and therefore deprive them of their arms.
Aristotle
Bring your desires down to your present means. Increase them only when your increased means permit.
Aristotle
Change in all things is sweet.
Aristotle
Character may almost be called the most effective means of persuasion.
Aristotle
Courage is a mean with regard to fear and confidence.
Aristotle
Aristotle
A friend to all is a friend to none.
Aristotle
A great city is not to be confounded with a populous one.
Aristotle
A true friend is one soul in two bodies.
Aristotle
A tyrant must put on the appearance of uncommon devotion to religion. Subjects are less apprehensive of illegal treatment from a ruler whom they consider god-fearing and pious. On the other hand, they do less easily move against him, believing that he has the gods on his side.
Aristotle
All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire.
Aristotle
All men by nature desire knowledge.
Aristotle
All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind.
Aristotle
All virtue is summed up in dealing justly.
Aristotle
Anybody can become angry - that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way - that is not within everybody's power and is not easy.
Aristotle
At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst.
Aristotle
Bad men are full of repentance.
Aristotle
Bashfulness is an ornament to youth, but a reproach to old age.
Aristotle
Both oligarch and tyrant mistrust the people, and therefore deprive them of their arms.
Aristotle
Bring your desires down to your present means. Increase them only when your increased means permit.
Aristotle
Change in all things is sweet.
Aristotle
Character may almost be called the most effective means of persuasion.
Aristotle
Courage is a mean with regard to fear and confidence.
Aristotle
MODEL CODE OF CONDUCT FOR THE GUIDANCE OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND CANDIDATES
ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA
MODEL CODE OF CONDUCT FOR THE GUIDANCE OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND CANDIDATES
1. General Conduct
(1) No party or candidate shall include in any activity which may aggravate
existing differences or create mutual hatred or cause tension between different
castes and communities, religious or linguistic.
(2) Criticism of other political parties, when made, shall be confined to their
policies and programme, past record and work. Parties and Candidates shall
refrain from criticism of all aspects of private life, not connected with the public
activities of the leaders or workers of other parties. Criticism of other parties or
their workers based on unverified allegations or distortion shall be avoided.
(3) There shall be no appeal to caste or communal feelings for securing votes.
Mosques, Churches, Temples or other places of worship shall not be used as
forum for election propaganda.
(4) All parties and candidates shall avoid scrupulously all activities which are
“corrupt practices” and offences under the election law, such as bribing of voters,
intimidation of voters, impersonation of voters, canvassing within 100 meters of
polling stations, holding public meetings during the period of 48 hours ending
with the hour fixed for the close of the poll, and the transport and conveyance of
voters to and from polling station.
(5)The right of every individual for peaceful and undisturbed home-life shall be
respected, however much the political parties or candidates may resent his political
opinions or activities. Organising demonstrations or picketing before the houses of
individuals by way of protesting against their opinions or activities shall not be
resorted to under any circumstances.
(6) No political party or candidate shall permit its or his followers to make use of
any individual’s land, building, compound wall etc., without his permission for
erecting flag-staffs, suspending banners, pasting notices, writing slogans etc.
(7) Political parties and candidates shall ensure that their supporters do not create obstructions in or break up meetings and processions organised by other parties. Workers or sympathisers of one political party shall not create disturbances at public meetings organised by another political party by putting questions orally or in writing or by distributing leaflets of their own party. Processions shall not be taken out by one party along places at which meetings are held by another party. Posters issued by one party shall not be removed by workers of another party.
II. Meetings
(1) The party or candidate shall inform the local police authorities of the
venue and time any proposed meeting Well in time so as to enable the police to
make necessary arragements for controlling traffic and maintaining peace and
order.
(2) A Party or candidate shall ascertain in advance if there is any restrictive or
prohibitory order in force in the place proposed for the meeting if such orders
exist, they shall be followed strictly. If any exemption is required from such
orders, it shall be applied for and obtained well in time.
(3) If permission or license is to be obtained for the use of loudspeakers or any
other facility in connection with any proposed meeting, the party or candidate
shall apply to the authority concerned well in advance and obtain such permission
or license.
(4) Organisers of a meeting shall invariably seek the assistance of the police on
duty for dealing with persons disturbing a meeting or otherwise attempting to
create disorder. Organisers themselves shall not take action against such persons.
III Procession
(1) A Party or candidate organizing a procession shall decide before hand the time
and place of the starting of the procession, the route to be followed and the time
and place at which the procession will terminate. There shall ordinary be on
deviation from the programme.
(2) The organisers shall give advance intimation to the local police authorities of
the programme so as to enable the letter to make necessary arrangement.
(3) The organisers shall ascertain if any restrictive orders are in force in the
localities through which the procession has to pass, and shall comply with the
restrictions unless exempted specially by the competent authority. Any traffic
regulations or restrictions shall also be carefully adhered to.
(4) The organisers shall take steps in advance to arrange for passage of the
procession so that there is no block or hindrance to traffic. If the procession is very long, it shall be organised in segments of suitable lengths, so that at convenient intervals, especially at points where the procession has to pass road junctions, the passage of held up traffic could be allowed by stages thus avoiding heavy traffic congestion.
(5) Processions shall be so regulated as to keep as much to the right of the road as
possible and the direction and advice of the police on duty shall be strictly
complied with.
(6) If two or more political parties or candidates propose to take processions over
the same route or parts thereof at about the same time, the organisers shall
establish contact well in advance and decide upon the measures to be taken to see
that the processions do not clash or cause hindrance to traffic. The assistance of
the local police shall be availed of for arriving at a satisfactory arrangement. For
this purpose the parties shall contact the police at the earliest opportunity.
(7) The political parties or candidates shall exercise control to the maximum extent
possible in the matter of processionists carrying articles which may be put to
misuse by undesirable elements especially in moments of excitement.
(8) The carrying of effigies purporting to represent member of other political
parties or their leaders, burning such effigies in public and such other forms
demonstration shall not be countenanced by any political party or candidate.
IV. Polling Day
All Political parties and candidates shall –
(i) co-operate with the officers on election duty to ensure peaceful and orderly
polling and complete freedom to the voters to exercise their franchise without
being subjected to any annoyance or obstruction.
(ii) supply to their authorized workers suitable badges or identity cards.
(iii) agree that the identity slip supplied by them to voters hall be on plain (white)
paper and shall not contain any symbol, name of the candidate or the name of the
party;
(iv) refrain from serving or distributing liquor on polling day and during the
fourty eight hours preceding it
(v) not allow unnecessary crowd to be collected near the camps set up by the
political parties and candidates near the polling booths so as to avoid
Confrontation and tension among workers and sympathizers of the parties and the
candidate.
(vi) ensure that the candidate’s camps shall be simple .The shall not
display any posters, flags, symbols or any other propaganda material. No eatable
shall be served or crowd allowed at the camps and
(vii) co-operate with the authorities in complying with the restrictions to be
imposed on the plying of vehicles on the polling day and obtain permits for them
which should be displayed prominently on those vehicles.
V. Polling Booth
Excepting the voters, no one without a valid pass from the Election
Commission shall enter the polling booths.
VI. Observers
The Election Commission is appointing Observers. If the candidates or
their agents have any specific complaint or problem regarding the conduct of
elections they may bring the same to the notice of the Observer.
VII. Party in Power
The party in power whether at the Centre or in the State or States
concerned, shall ensure that no cause is given for any complaint that it has used its
official position for the purposes of its election campaign and in particular –
(i) (a) The Ministers shall not combine their official visit with electioneering work
and shall not also make use of official machinery or personnel during the
electioneering work.
(b) Government transport including official air-crafts, vehicles, machinery and
personnel shall not be used for furtherance of the interest of the party in power;
(ii) Public places such as maidans etc., for holding election meetings, and use of
helipads for air-flights in connection with elections shall not be monopolized by
itself. Other parties and candidates shall be allowed the use of such places and
facilities on the same terms and conditions on which they are used by the party in
power;
(iii) Rest houses, dark bungalows or other Government accommodation shall not
be monopolized by the party in power or its candidates and such accommodation
shall be allowed to be used by other parties and candidates in a fair manner but no
party or candidate shall use or be allowed to use such accommodation (including
premises appertaining thereto) as a campaign office or for holding any public
meeting for the purposes of election propaganda;
(iv) Issue of advertisement at the cost of public exchequer in the newspapers and
other media and the misuse of official mass media during the election period for
partisan coverage of political news and publicity regarding achievements with a
view to furthering the prospects of the party in power shall be scrupulously
avoided.
(v) Ministers and other authorities shall not sanction grants/payments out of
discretionary funds from the time elections are announced by the Commission;
and
(vi) From the time elections are announced by Commission, Ministers and other
authorities shall not –
(a) announce any financial grants in any form or promises thereof; or
(b) (except civil servants) lay foundation stones etc. of projects or schemes of any
kind; or
(c) make any promise of construction of roads, provision of drinking water
facilities etc.; or
(d) make any ad-hoc appointments in Government, Public Undertakings
etc. which may have the effect of influencing the voters in favour of the
party in power.
Note : The Commission shall announce the date of any election which shall be a
date ordinarily not more than three weeks prior to the date on which the
notification is likely to be issued in respect of such elections.
(vii) Ministers of Central or State Government shall not enter any polling station
or place of counting except in their capacity as a candidate or voter or authorised
MODEL CODE OF CONDUCT FOR THE GUIDANCE OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND CANDIDATES
1. General Conduct
(1) No party or candidate shall include in any activity which may aggravate
existing differences or create mutual hatred or cause tension between different
castes and communities, religious or linguistic.
(2) Criticism of other political parties, when made, shall be confined to their
policies and programme, past record and work. Parties and Candidates shall
refrain from criticism of all aspects of private life, not connected with the public
activities of the leaders or workers of other parties. Criticism of other parties or
their workers based on unverified allegations or distortion shall be avoided.
(3) There shall be no appeal to caste or communal feelings for securing votes.
Mosques, Churches, Temples or other places of worship shall not be used as
forum for election propaganda.
(4) All parties and candidates shall avoid scrupulously all activities which are
“corrupt practices” and offences under the election law, such as bribing of voters,
intimidation of voters, impersonation of voters, canvassing within 100 meters of
polling stations, holding public meetings during the period of 48 hours ending
with the hour fixed for the close of the poll, and the transport and conveyance of
voters to and from polling station.
(5)The right of every individual for peaceful and undisturbed home-life shall be
respected, however much the political parties or candidates may resent his political
opinions or activities. Organising demonstrations or picketing before the houses of
individuals by way of protesting against their opinions or activities shall not be
resorted to under any circumstances.
(6) No political party or candidate shall permit its or his followers to make use of
any individual’s land, building, compound wall etc., without his permission for
erecting flag-staffs, suspending banners, pasting notices, writing slogans etc.
(7) Political parties and candidates shall ensure that their supporters do not create obstructions in or break up meetings and processions organised by other parties. Workers or sympathisers of one political party shall not create disturbances at public meetings organised by another political party by putting questions orally or in writing or by distributing leaflets of their own party. Processions shall not be taken out by one party along places at which meetings are held by another party. Posters issued by one party shall not be removed by workers of another party.
II. Meetings
(1) The party or candidate shall inform the local police authorities of the
venue and time any proposed meeting Well in time so as to enable the police to
make necessary arragements for controlling traffic and maintaining peace and
order.
(2) A Party or candidate shall ascertain in advance if there is any restrictive or
prohibitory order in force in the place proposed for the meeting if such orders
exist, they shall be followed strictly. If any exemption is required from such
orders, it shall be applied for and obtained well in time.
(3) If permission or license is to be obtained for the use of loudspeakers or any
other facility in connection with any proposed meeting, the party or candidate
shall apply to the authority concerned well in advance and obtain such permission
or license.
(4) Organisers of a meeting shall invariably seek the assistance of the police on
duty for dealing with persons disturbing a meeting or otherwise attempting to
create disorder. Organisers themselves shall not take action against such persons.
III Procession
(1) A Party or candidate organizing a procession shall decide before hand the time
and place of the starting of the procession, the route to be followed and the time
and place at which the procession will terminate. There shall ordinary be on
deviation from the programme.
(2) The organisers shall give advance intimation to the local police authorities of
the programme so as to enable the letter to make necessary arrangement.
(3) The organisers shall ascertain if any restrictive orders are in force in the
localities through which the procession has to pass, and shall comply with the
restrictions unless exempted specially by the competent authority. Any traffic
regulations or restrictions shall also be carefully adhered to.
(4) The organisers shall take steps in advance to arrange for passage of the
procession so that there is no block or hindrance to traffic. If the procession is very long, it shall be organised in segments of suitable lengths, so that at convenient intervals, especially at points where the procession has to pass road junctions, the passage of held up traffic could be allowed by stages thus avoiding heavy traffic congestion.
(5) Processions shall be so regulated as to keep as much to the right of the road as
possible and the direction and advice of the police on duty shall be strictly
complied with.
(6) If two or more political parties or candidates propose to take processions over
the same route or parts thereof at about the same time, the organisers shall
establish contact well in advance and decide upon the measures to be taken to see
that the processions do not clash or cause hindrance to traffic. The assistance of
the local police shall be availed of for arriving at a satisfactory arrangement. For
this purpose the parties shall contact the police at the earliest opportunity.
(7) The political parties or candidates shall exercise control to the maximum extent
possible in the matter of processionists carrying articles which may be put to
misuse by undesirable elements especially in moments of excitement.
(8) The carrying of effigies purporting to represent member of other political
parties or their leaders, burning such effigies in public and such other forms
demonstration shall not be countenanced by any political party or candidate.
IV. Polling Day
All Political parties and candidates shall –
(i) co-operate with the officers on election duty to ensure peaceful and orderly
polling and complete freedom to the voters to exercise their franchise without
being subjected to any annoyance or obstruction.
(ii) supply to their authorized workers suitable badges or identity cards.
(iii) agree that the identity slip supplied by them to voters hall be on plain (white)
paper and shall not contain any symbol, name of the candidate or the name of the
party;
(iv) refrain from serving or distributing liquor on polling day and during the
fourty eight hours preceding it
(v) not allow unnecessary crowd to be collected near the camps set up by the
political parties and candidates near the polling booths so as to avoid
Confrontation and tension among workers and sympathizers of the parties and the
candidate.
(vi) ensure that the candidate’s camps shall be simple .The shall not
display any posters, flags, symbols or any other propaganda material. No eatable
shall be served or crowd allowed at the camps and
(vii) co-operate with the authorities in complying with the restrictions to be
imposed on the plying of vehicles on the polling day and obtain permits for them
which should be displayed prominently on those vehicles.
V. Polling Booth
Excepting the voters, no one without a valid pass from the Election
Commission shall enter the polling booths.
VI. Observers
The Election Commission is appointing Observers. If the candidates or
their agents have any specific complaint or problem regarding the conduct of
elections they may bring the same to the notice of the Observer.
VII. Party in Power
The party in power whether at the Centre or in the State or States
concerned, shall ensure that no cause is given for any complaint that it has used its
official position for the purposes of its election campaign and in particular –
(i) (a) The Ministers shall not combine their official visit with electioneering work
and shall not also make use of official machinery or personnel during the
electioneering work.
(b) Government transport including official air-crafts, vehicles, machinery and
personnel shall not be used for furtherance of the interest of the party in power;
(ii) Public places such as maidans etc., for holding election meetings, and use of
helipads for air-flights in connection with elections shall not be monopolized by
itself. Other parties and candidates shall be allowed the use of such places and
facilities on the same terms and conditions on which they are used by the party in
power;
(iii) Rest houses, dark bungalows or other Government accommodation shall not
be monopolized by the party in power or its candidates and such accommodation
shall be allowed to be used by other parties and candidates in a fair manner but no
party or candidate shall use or be allowed to use such accommodation (including
premises appertaining thereto) as a campaign office or for holding any public
meeting for the purposes of election propaganda;
(iv) Issue of advertisement at the cost of public exchequer in the newspapers and
other media and the misuse of official mass media during the election period for
partisan coverage of political news and publicity regarding achievements with a
view to furthering the prospects of the party in power shall be scrupulously
avoided.
(v) Ministers and other authorities shall not sanction grants/payments out of
discretionary funds from the time elections are announced by the Commission;
and
(vi) From the time elections are announced by Commission, Ministers and other
authorities shall not –
(a) announce any financial grants in any form or promises thereof; or
(b) (except civil servants) lay foundation stones etc. of projects or schemes of any
kind; or
(c) make any promise of construction of roads, provision of drinking water
facilities etc.; or
(d) make any ad-hoc appointments in Government, Public Undertakings
etc. which may have the effect of influencing the voters in favour of the
party in power.
Note : The Commission shall announce the date of any election which shall be a
date ordinarily not more than three weeks prior to the date on which the
notification is likely to be issued in respect of such elections.
(vii) Ministers of Central or State Government shall not enter any polling station
or place of counting except in their capacity as a candidate or voter or authorised
Monday, April 25, 2011
A corridor for elephants or land sharks?
A corridor for elephants or land sharks?
The government says this area in A Raja’s constituency should be an elephant corridor. But experts disagree, reports Imran Khan 30 April, 2011
Animals or farms? The jumbo corridor will displace 125 families
FOR THE people of Tamil Nadu’s Sholur panchayat, comprising six hamlets, it was a matter of life and death when they decided to boycott the recent Assembly poll. This panchayat of over 10,000, represented by former telecom minister A Raja, is furious over the judgment of the Madras High Court that gave permission to the state forest department to acquire their land for an elephant corridor.
Sholur panchayat falls in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, home to some of the most endangered species of flora and fauna. The 5,000-sq km reserve spread across three states (Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala) houses the Mudumalai tiger reserve and the largest number of Asiatic elephants.
This place is also home to tribals, including Irulas and Kurumbas, who dwell in small hamlets in the Moyar, Mavanallah, Bokkapuram and Vazhaithottam areas. They will be dislocated by the recent ruling, which came in response to a petition filed by advocate Elephant G Rajendran with regard to the protection of elephant corridors.
Related
From Green To Grey
The Poisoned Wild
Elephants Must Forget
Activists and tribal leaders are angry, particularly because the petitioner had demanded that only 584 acres be acquired. An affidavit filed in the court by the then Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) CK Sreedharan clearly indicated the area to be acquired. But, says CR Bijoy of Campaign for Survival and Dignity, the government went and notified around 7,000 acres. “This is pure land grab in the name of the elephant,’’ adds Bijoy.
“These lands fall under the Tamil Nadu Private Forest Act, 1961,” explains Mohan Raj of World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). “And it has been found that these patta lands have been acquired by locals and resort owners without permission from the state forest department.” Further, he says, “Only 125 families will be affected by this corridor, and the judgment says that tribals should either be compensated or given an alternative site.”
Local activists, however, are not so sanguine. They find fault with the very concept of a fifth elephant corridor by the committee constituted of only forest officials.
PT Varghese of Masinagudi Farmers and Landowners Association cites the book Right of Passage by Project Elephant and the Wildlife Trust of India. In the Masinagudi area, four corridors have been identified linking the Eastern and Western Ghats. “We are not within any of these identified areas,” he says.
“This book is written by Asian elephant expert Raman Sukumar who is also on the board of Wildlife Trust of India. However, he has eight acres on the same fifth elephant corridor. He chose to ignore it since his house is on it,” says Mohan Raj.
Human rights Varghese represents the landowners
RESPONDING TO this allegation, Sukumar, who is a professor at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, says, “My land is outside the protected area. Construction followed the prescribed norms.” He adds, “I decided to build the house after looking at other studies done by ERC Davidar and elephant conservationist Ajay Desai. Both these reports and the Radio Telemetric study conducted by Desai clearly show no movement of elephants in this area.”
True enough, Desai’s research (Home Range of Elephants in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, South India), a copy of which is with TEHELKA, doesn’t identify any fifth corridor. But while testifying in court, Desai said that the area south of Bokkapuram village comes under the fifth corridor and most of it is forest land, illegally acquired by resort owners and locals without permission. Desai was unavailable for comment.
Asked about the district administration’s plans, Collector Archana Patnaik said that the court order would be implemented and an eviction plan devised.
Imran Khan is a Correspondent with Tehelka.com
imran@tehelka.com
The government says this area in A Raja’s constituency should be an elephant corridor. But experts disagree, reports Imran Khan 30 April, 2011
Animals or farms? The jumbo corridor will displace 125 families
FOR THE people of Tamil Nadu’s Sholur panchayat, comprising six hamlets, it was a matter of life and death when they decided to boycott the recent Assembly poll. This panchayat of over 10,000, represented by former telecom minister A Raja, is furious over the judgment of the Madras High Court that gave permission to the state forest department to acquire their land for an elephant corridor.
Sholur panchayat falls in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, home to some of the most endangered species of flora and fauna. The 5,000-sq km reserve spread across three states (Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala) houses the Mudumalai tiger reserve and the largest number of Asiatic elephants.
This place is also home to tribals, including Irulas and Kurumbas, who dwell in small hamlets in the Moyar, Mavanallah, Bokkapuram and Vazhaithottam areas. They will be dislocated by the recent ruling, which came in response to a petition filed by advocate Elephant G Rajendran with regard to the protection of elephant corridors.
Related
From Green To Grey
The Poisoned Wild
Elephants Must Forget
Activists and tribal leaders are angry, particularly because the petitioner had demanded that only 584 acres be acquired. An affidavit filed in the court by the then Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) CK Sreedharan clearly indicated the area to be acquired. But, says CR Bijoy of Campaign for Survival and Dignity, the government went and notified around 7,000 acres. “This is pure land grab in the name of the elephant,’’ adds Bijoy.
“These lands fall under the Tamil Nadu Private Forest Act, 1961,” explains Mohan Raj of World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). “And it has been found that these patta lands have been acquired by locals and resort owners without permission from the state forest department.” Further, he says, “Only 125 families will be affected by this corridor, and the judgment says that tribals should either be compensated or given an alternative site.”
Local activists, however, are not so sanguine. They find fault with the very concept of a fifth elephant corridor by the committee constituted of only forest officials.
PT Varghese of Masinagudi Farmers and Landowners Association cites the book Right of Passage by Project Elephant and the Wildlife Trust of India. In the Masinagudi area, four corridors have been identified linking the Eastern and Western Ghats. “We are not within any of these identified areas,” he says.
“This book is written by Asian elephant expert Raman Sukumar who is also on the board of Wildlife Trust of India. However, he has eight acres on the same fifth elephant corridor. He chose to ignore it since his house is on it,” says Mohan Raj.
Human rights Varghese represents the landowners
RESPONDING TO this allegation, Sukumar, who is a professor at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, says, “My land is outside the protected area. Construction followed the prescribed norms.” He adds, “I decided to build the house after looking at other studies done by ERC Davidar and elephant conservationist Ajay Desai. Both these reports and the Radio Telemetric study conducted by Desai clearly show no movement of elephants in this area.”
True enough, Desai’s research (Home Range of Elephants in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, South India), a copy of which is with TEHELKA, doesn’t identify any fifth corridor. But while testifying in court, Desai said that the area south of Bokkapuram village comes under the fifth corridor and most of it is forest land, illegally acquired by resort owners and locals without permission. Desai was unavailable for comment.
Asked about the district administration’s plans, Collector Archana Patnaik said that the court order would be implemented and an eviction plan devised.
Imran Khan is a Correspondent with Tehelka.com
imran@tehelka.com
The Hindu family feud gets ugly, editor N Ravi thrown out
The Hindu family feud gets ugly, editor N Ravi thrown out
Ravi writes a damning letter against N Ram, questioning his silence on A Raja
Tehelka Bureau, 21 April, 2011
New Delhi
N Ram, the editor-in-chief of The Hindu, and N Ravi, who was recently sacked as the editor
The family feud of the owners of The Hindu daily has intensified further, with N Ram, the editor-in-chief of the newspaper, teaming up with some directors to keep his cousin N Ravi away from the post of the next editor-in-chief. Ram has appointed Siddharth Varadarajan in Ravi’s place, who till now was the strategic affairs editor of the newspaper. Varadarajan also headed the national bureau of the newspaper in Delhi.
Ram was supposed to have retired last May when he turned 65, and Ravi was to take over from him as the new editor-in-chief. But, now Ravi finds himself in the wilderness. He points out how Ram had earlier tried to remove another family member, N Murali, as the managing director of the company. Ravi also points out the Ram had thrown out another family member Malini Parthasarathy, who held the post of the executive editor, from the newspaper.
Ravi has shot out a letter to all employees of the newspaper, protesting against his removal by the board of directors in a “supposed” meeting held on Monday. Following is Ravi’s letter titled “The recent happenings in The Hindu” and written on April 20:
“Even as we are entering the second, and what might turn out to be a prolonged, phase of conflict and turbulence in the institution, I write to seek your understanding.
Related
The house that Raja built
No War, No Peace
How a War veteran became a national embarrassment
“In a shocking display of bad faith that has left me deeply anguished, N. Ram and some of the directors at the meeting of the Board on April 18, 2011 have sought to remove me and appoint as editor Siddharth Varadarajan who joined The Hindu in 2004.
You are all aware that I have been working in a wholly professional capacity for several decades ever since I joined the newspaper as a reporter in 1972. During this period, I have been fortunate to enjoy your cooperation and help in taking the newspaper forward. After 1991 when I took over as editor, our team transformed The Hindu from a Chennai-centred daily with just one page of local news to a well recognized national newspaper with extensive local and state coverage spread over four pages, and attractive features. We started a lively engagement with the leading issues of the day with extensive coverage and diverse viewpoints. We sought to uphold editorial integrity, seeking accountability from institutions and public officials without fear or favour.
“Though the economy then was not so buoyant as during the later period, between January 1991 and June 2003, the circulation of The Hindu increased from 4,52,918 copies (July-December 1990) to 9,33,458 copies (January-June 2003) or by 4,80,540 copies or 106.1%. In the more recent period, The Hindu has been losing market share, and from being level with the Hindustan Times, it has now fallen far behind that newspaper. Findings from the most recent market survey present a depressing picture of reader perception of unappealing content and a pronounced bias towards the left.
“It is a matter of public record that N. Ram, Editor-in-Chief, was to retire on May 4, 2010 on turning 65 and I was to take over as Editor-in-Chief under the arrangement agreed upon. However, in a shocking display of bad faith, Ram went on to renege on his commitment to retire and the whole process of editorial succession came to a standstill.
“During the conflict created by Ram’s breach of faith, Ram and a group of directors on the Board removed the powers and responsibilities of N. Murali, Managing Director in a vindictive move that was overturned by the Company Law Board, Chennai Bench that also came out with a severe indictment that their action was lacking in probity, good faith and fairness. Barely four months after the indictment, Ram and his group of directors have turned on me with the same lack of probity, good faith and fairness and have sought to remove me and impose a plan of editorial succession that is totally at variance with the longstanding tradition and practice in the institution and is also contrary to the directions of the Company Law Board.
“Almost a year past the agreed retirement date, his position having become untenable in the face of the Company Law Board order, Ram seems bent on taking all the editorial directors—most are in their 50s—into retirement with him with a scorched earth policy to ensure that no one in the family succeeds him. Instead of coming up with a succession plan, he and some of the other directors have come up with a plan of wholesale removal. In a sudden change of rules and under the specious plea of separating ownership from management, along with my removal as editor, Nirmala Lakshman is to be forced to ‘step down’ as joint editor and Malini Parthasarathy as executive editor.
“Apart from the basic unfairness of the removal, the move seeks to entrench several of the distortions that have crept into the editorial framework since 2003 when Ram was appointed Editor-in-Chief by stealth over the protests of four of us. Among the issues that I have raised with the other directors during the discussions in the Board and outside are: the unmerited coverage of certain political favourites on specific directions; excessive coverage of the activities of the left and some of its leaders; for reasons that are bound to emerge sooner rather than later, turning the newspaper into an apologist for A. Raja through the 2G scam coverage, remaining deafeningly silent on his resignation in the face of mounting evidence even when demanding the resignation of Suresh Kalmadi, Ashok Chavan and Yeddyurappa in similar circumstances; pronounced pro-China tilt, blacking out or downplaying any news that is less than complimentary to the Chinese Communist regime; and contrary to the practice in any mainline newspaper, the Editor-in-Chief indulging in an unceasing self-glorification campaign, publishing his own ribbon cutting pictures and reports of his activities and speeches with a regularity that would put corporate house journals to shame.
“The Hindu as an institution had in the past valued its editorial integrity over all else. In the recent period, editorial integrity has been severely compromised and news coverage linked directly to advertising in a way that is little different from paid news. A meaningless distinction has been sought to be made between walls and lines, and the walls between editorial and advertising are sought to be replaced by “lines” between them. Very recently, those of us who were not privy to the deal making learnt to our shock that a major interview with A. Raja in defence of the telecom licensing policy published on May 22, 2010—that was referred to by the Prime Minister in his press conference--involved a direct quid pro quo in the form of a full page, colour advertisement from the Telecom Ministry that was specially and hurriedly cleared by the Minister personally for publication on the same day in The Hindu. The contrast between such a deed and pious editorial declarations including the campaign against paid news cannot be starker. To continue with such practices, the editorial structure is sought to be changed, with the editor being made subordinate to an executive board comprising a majority of business side executives. The undermining of the primacy of the editorial function is an attack on the very soul of The Hindu. In the context of these distortions that have crept into actual practice, the high sounding code of editorial values that is sought to be publicized now would seem no more than empty rhetoric.
“This round of turbulence comes at a time when all manner of investors are looking to gain influence and control over the media, and competition is increasing with newspapers striving to attract the attention of readers through better, more contemporary and enriched content. As part of the journalistic team, all of you have contributed so much to the growth of The Hindu and are vitally interested in the task of moving forward in a highly competitive environment even while observing the highest standards of editorial integrity. I feel strongly that when a distorted picture has emerged based on selective leaks, information on the happenings cannot be restricted to the confines of the boardroom and all the journalists as stakeholders need to be taken into confidence.
“It is in this spirit that I am sharing my views with you all. I also write to you with the confidence that the unfair and untenable move will not be allowed to prevail. In the task of upholding the editorial principles that are so dear to all of us, I appeal for your support and understanding."
letters@tehelka.com
Ravi writes a damning letter against N Ram, questioning his silence on A Raja
Tehelka Bureau, 21 April, 2011
New Delhi
N Ram, the editor-in-chief of The Hindu, and N Ravi, who was recently sacked as the editor
The family feud of the owners of The Hindu daily has intensified further, with N Ram, the editor-in-chief of the newspaper, teaming up with some directors to keep his cousin N Ravi away from the post of the next editor-in-chief. Ram has appointed Siddharth Varadarajan in Ravi’s place, who till now was the strategic affairs editor of the newspaper. Varadarajan also headed the national bureau of the newspaper in Delhi.
Ram was supposed to have retired last May when he turned 65, and Ravi was to take over from him as the new editor-in-chief. But, now Ravi finds himself in the wilderness. He points out how Ram had earlier tried to remove another family member, N Murali, as the managing director of the company. Ravi also points out the Ram had thrown out another family member Malini Parthasarathy, who held the post of the executive editor, from the newspaper.
Ravi has shot out a letter to all employees of the newspaper, protesting against his removal by the board of directors in a “supposed” meeting held on Monday. Following is Ravi’s letter titled “The recent happenings in The Hindu” and written on April 20:
“Even as we are entering the second, and what might turn out to be a prolonged, phase of conflict and turbulence in the institution, I write to seek your understanding.
Related
The house that Raja built
No War, No Peace
How a War veteran became a national embarrassment
“In a shocking display of bad faith that has left me deeply anguished, N. Ram and some of the directors at the meeting of the Board on April 18, 2011 have sought to remove me and appoint as editor Siddharth Varadarajan who joined The Hindu in 2004.
You are all aware that I have been working in a wholly professional capacity for several decades ever since I joined the newspaper as a reporter in 1972. During this period, I have been fortunate to enjoy your cooperation and help in taking the newspaper forward. After 1991 when I took over as editor, our team transformed The Hindu from a Chennai-centred daily with just one page of local news to a well recognized national newspaper with extensive local and state coverage spread over four pages, and attractive features. We started a lively engagement with the leading issues of the day with extensive coverage and diverse viewpoints. We sought to uphold editorial integrity, seeking accountability from institutions and public officials without fear or favour.
“Though the economy then was not so buoyant as during the later period, between January 1991 and June 2003, the circulation of The Hindu increased from 4,52,918 copies (July-December 1990) to 9,33,458 copies (January-June 2003) or by 4,80,540 copies or 106.1%. In the more recent period, The Hindu has been losing market share, and from being level with the Hindustan Times, it has now fallen far behind that newspaper. Findings from the most recent market survey present a depressing picture of reader perception of unappealing content and a pronounced bias towards the left.
“It is a matter of public record that N. Ram, Editor-in-Chief, was to retire on May 4, 2010 on turning 65 and I was to take over as Editor-in-Chief under the arrangement agreed upon. However, in a shocking display of bad faith, Ram went on to renege on his commitment to retire and the whole process of editorial succession came to a standstill.
“During the conflict created by Ram’s breach of faith, Ram and a group of directors on the Board removed the powers and responsibilities of N. Murali, Managing Director in a vindictive move that was overturned by the Company Law Board, Chennai Bench that also came out with a severe indictment that their action was lacking in probity, good faith and fairness. Barely four months after the indictment, Ram and his group of directors have turned on me with the same lack of probity, good faith and fairness and have sought to remove me and impose a plan of editorial succession that is totally at variance with the longstanding tradition and practice in the institution and is also contrary to the directions of the Company Law Board.
“Almost a year past the agreed retirement date, his position having become untenable in the face of the Company Law Board order, Ram seems bent on taking all the editorial directors—most are in their 50s—into retirement with him with a scorched earth policy to ensure that no one in the family succeeds him. Instead of coming up with a succession plan, he and some of the other directors have come up with a plan of wholesale removal. In a sudden change of rules and under the specious plea of separating ownership from management, along with my removal as editor, Nirmala Lakshman is to be forced to ‘step down’ as joint editor and Malini Parthasarathy as executive editor.
“Apart from the basic unfairness of the removal, the move seeks to entrench several of the distortions that have crept into the editorial framework since 2003 when Ram was appointed Editor-in-Chief by stealth over the protests of four of us. Among the issues that I have raised with the other directors during the discussions in the Board and outside are: the unmerited coverage of certain political favourites on specific directions; excessive coverage of the activities of the left and some of its leaders; for reasons that are bound to emerge sooner rather than later, turning the newspaper into an apologist for A. Raja through the 2G scam coverage, remaining deafeningly silent on his resignation in the face of mounting evidence even when demanding the resignation of Suresh Kalmadi, Ashok Chavan and Yeddyurappa in similar circumstances; pronounced pro-China tilt, blacking out or downplaying any news that is less than complimentary to the Chinese Communist regime; and contrary to the practice in any mainline newspaper, the Editor-in-Chief indulging in an unceasing self-glorification campaign, publishing his own ribbon cutting pictures and reports of his activities and speeches with a regularity that would put corporate house journals to shame.
“The Hindu as an institution had in the past valued its editorial integrity over all else. In the recent period, editorial integrity has been severely compromised and news coverage linked directly to advertising in a way that is little different from paid news. A meaningless distinction has been sought to be made between walls and lines, and the walls between editorial and advertising are sought to be replaced by “lines” between them. Very recently, those of us who were not privy to the deal making learnt to our shock that a major interview with A. Raja in defence of the telecom licensing policy published on May 22, 2010—that was referred to by the Prime Minister in his press conference--involved a direct quid pro quo in the form of a full page, colour advertisement from the Telecom Ministry that was specially and hurriedly cleared by the Minister personally for publication on the same day in The Hindu. The contrast between such a deed and pious editorial declarations including the campaign against paid news cannot be starker. To continue with such practices, the editorial structure is sought to be changed, with the editor being made subordinate to an executive board comprising a majority of business side executives. The undermining of the primacy of the editorial function is an attack on the very soul of The Hindu. In the context of these distortions that have crept into actual practice, the high sounding code of editorial values that is sought to be publicized now would seem no more than empty rhetoric.
“This round of turbulence comes at a time when all manner of investors are looking to gain influence and control over the media, and competition is increasing with newspapers striving to attract the attention of readers through better, more contemporary and enriched content. As part of the journalistic team, all of you have contributed so much to the growth of The Hindu and are vitally interested in the task of moving forward in a highly competitive environment even while observing the highest standards of editorial integrity. I feel strongly that when a distorted picture has emerged based on selective leaks, information on the happenings cannot be restricted to the confines of the boardroom and all the journalists as stakeholders need to be taken into confidence.
“It is in this spirit that I am sharing my views with you all. I also write to you with the confidence that the unfair and untenable move will not be allowed to prevail. In the task of upholding the editorial principles that are so dear to all of us, I appeal for your support and understanding."
letters@tehelka.com
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Poverty in India--ICSA Hand out No. 17: Visit the following link
http://www.scribd.com/doc/53681205/Poverty-in-India
Census 2011--ICSA Handout 18: Visit the following link
http://www.scribd.com/doc/53679057/Census-2011
Friday, April 22, 2011
WBCS Study Room
A New Dedicated Blog for WBCS Aspirants: wbcsstudymat.blogspot.com is being created. Join as Followers and send your Queries. Your queries will be answered by WBCS Toppers only.
Fertiliser subsidy bill set to shoot up by Rs 8000 cr
NEW DELHI: The Centre's fertiliser subsidy bill is set to shoot up by an estimated Rs 8000 crore mark with the department of fertilizers (DoF) mooting higher P and K nutrient subsidy to companies. This, after companies clinched phosphoric acid and DAP imports at price levels much higher than the benchmark rates prescribed by the government.
Once approved, this would be the third reality check on import prices that the DoF will be resorting to since November last year for 2011-12,. The rates were revised upward in February again, but clearly this increase too has failed to take a pragmatic view of fast soaring global fertiliser prices. Industry usually contracts imports for new crop year by end February/early March. But marked increase in prices put a spoke in that timetable.
The BE for this fiscal is pegged at a low Rs 49998 crore. Higher international prices of inputs and raw materials, leading to higher import prices for key fertilisers, are now threatening to pressure food prices. Now, with a normal south west monsoon forecast for this summer, fertiliser demand is expected to go up, even if not to last summer's levels, but global raw material prices is likely to temper home supply..Demand for the kharif season is pegged up 4% since last summer, at 28.8 mt compared to 27.7 mt .
In the case of potash, industry has already announced an import "holiday" last week, primarily on account of high international prices, contending that the country had enough supplies for complexes for the coming kharif sowing season. The move was meant to pressure cartelising global suppliers to peg their prices down but it appears to be having little effect, with a major German supplier to Europe announcing a further price hike after April 22. This, although India is the among the world's top two importers.
"We have put up a note for the upward revision the Cabinet for approval," an official from the department told ET. While potash is used mostly for commercial crops such as tobacco, cotton and sugarcane, the government's worries are higher in the case of phosphatic fertilisers including DAP and complexes which are key to food crops at sowing time.
"If NBS rates are not revised once again, it will pressure industry margins on DAP (di-ammonium phosphate) and complexes, while absence of MoP (muriate of potash) in the market this kharif is a certainty," sectoral analyst Tarun Surana of Mumbai based Sunidhi Securities and Finance said. Fertilizer manufacturers have already hiked retail prices of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) and complex fertilizers by up to 15% in the last 3-4 months.
Almost 90% of India's requirement of the phosphatic (P) fertilizers is met with imports while for potassic (K) fertilizers the country is totally dependent on foreign sources. Prices of phosphoric acid, a key ingredient in phosphatic fertilisers, are currently hovering around $700/tonne, $100 higher than last year. The benchmark price set by the government for potash, at $390/tonne, is nowhere near the supplier cartel's current quote of $500/tonne.
Under the nutrient-based subsidy (NBS) regime introduced from April 1, 2010, the retail prices of P & K fertilizers have been freed .but industry claims price hikes are being kept reined in for the present in order not to jeopardise farm output..The government provides a fixed annual subsidy based on per kilo of nutrient - K or P- in the fertilizer, leaving the industry to fix retail prices.
Projections are that there will be a 12% hike in subsidy for P nutrients (to Rs 31/kg from the current earlier Rs 29.41/kg) compared to only Rs 26.28/kg last year. For K (phosphatic) nutrient, the benchmark price is expected to be revised to Rs 26.50/kg compared to the February level of Rs 24.63/kg , spelling a 1% hike in FY 2011-12 compared to FY 2010-11. Industry estimates are that the hike in benchmark rates for P and K nutrients from existing rates alone will shoot up the government's subsidy bill by Rs 3500 crore.
Urea is still to be freed for imports by the private sector but even parastatals were unable to clinch imports at the Rs 20.11/kg level set by the government earlier. The revised price level announced in February 2011, however, was realistic and more reflective of ground realities and actual import prices, at Rs 27.48/kg, spelling an 18% hike. (22 Apr, 2011, 04.56AM IST, Prabha Jagannathan,ET Bureau )
Once approved, this would be the third reality check on import prices that the DoF will be resorting to since November last year for 2011-12,. The rates were revised upward in February again, but clearly this increase too has failed to take a pragmatic view of fast soaring global fertiliser prices. Industry usually contracts imports for new crop year by end February/early March. But marked increase in prices put a spoke in that timetable.
The BE for this fiscal is pegged at a low Rs 49998 crore. Higher international prices of inputs and raw materials, leading to higher import prices for key fertilisers, are now threatening to pressure food prices. Now, with a normal south west monsoon forecast for this summer, fertiliser demand is expected to go up, even if not to last summer's levels, but global raw material prices is likely to temper home supply..Demand for the kharif season is pegged up 4% since last summer, at 28.8 mt compared to 27.7 mt .
In the case of potash, industry has already announced an import "holiday" last week, primarily on account of high international prices, contending that the country had enough supplies for complexes for the coming kharif sowing season. The move was meant to pressure cartelising global suppliers to peg their prices down but it appears to be having little effect, with a major German supplier to Europe announcing a further price hike after April 22. This, although India is the among the world's top two importers.
"We have put up a note for the upward revision the Cabinet for approval," an official from the department told ET. While potash is used mostly for commercial crops such as tobacco, cotton and sugarcane, the government's worries are higher in the case of phosphatic fertilisers including DAP and complexes which are key to food crops at sowing time.
"If NBS rates are not revised once again, it will pressure industry margins on DAP (di-ammonium phosphate) and complexes, while absence of MoP (muriate of potash) in the market this kharif is a certainty," sectoral analyst Tarun Surana of Mumbai based Sunidhi Securities and Finance said. Fertilizer manufacturers have already hiked retail prices of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) and complex fertilizers by up to 15% in the last 3-4 months.
Almost 90% of India's requirement of the phosphatic (P) fertilizers is met with imports while for potassic (K) fertilizers the country is totally dependent on foreign sources. Prices of phosphoric acid, a key ingredient in phosphatic fertilisers, are currently hovering around $700/tonne, $100 higher than last year. The benchmark price set by the government for potash, at $390/tonne, is nowhere near the supplier cartel's current quote of $500/tonne.
Under the nutrient-based subsidy (NBS) regime introduced from April 1, 2010, the retail prices of P & K fertilizers have been freed .but industry claims price hikes are being kept reined in for the present in order not to jeopardise farm output..The government provides a fixed annual subsidy based on per kilo of nutrient - K or P- in the fertilizer, leaving the industry to fix retail prices.
Projections are that there will be a 12% hike in subsidy for P nutrients (to Rs 31/kg from the current earlier Rs 29.41/kg) compared to only Rs 26.28/kg last year. For K (phosphatic) nutrient, the benchmark price is expected to be revised to Rs 26.50/kg compared to the February level of Rs 24.63/kg , spelling a 1% hike in FY 2011-12 compared to FY 2010-11. Industry estimates are that the hike in benchmark rates for P and K nutrients from existing rates alone will shoot up the government's subsidy bill by Rs 3500 crore.
Urea is still to be freed for imports by the private sector but even parastatals were unable to clinch imports at the Rs 20.11/kg level set by the government earlier. The revised price level announced in February 2011, however, was realistic and more reflective of ground realities and actual import prices, at Rs 27.48/kg, spelling an 18% hike. (22 Apr, 2011, 04.56AM IST, Prabha Jagannathan,ET Bureau )
Monday, April 11, 2011
Lokpal--THE OMBUDSMAN MODEL
The concept of Lokpal is based on the Scandinavian institution of ombudsman. 'Ombudsman' is a Swedish word that means "an officer appointed by the legislature to handle complaints against administrative and judicial action". The office was created first in Sweden in 1809 and later adopted by other Scandinavian countries that saw it as "a bulwark of democratic government against the tyranny of officialdom".
The ombudsman can take suo moto cognizance of public grievances and either launch an investigation himself or hire a private agency for the purpose. In Sweden and Finland, the ombudsman has the power to prosecute erring public servants but in Denmark he can only order prosecution.
In all these countries, the power of prosecution is rarely used. The ombudsman relies more on the publicity attached to its office and the negative impact of an investigation on the career of an official. In Sweden and Finland, the ombudsman can also supervise the courts.
The UK has a similar institution, but with slightly different powers. Here, the ombudsman is known as the Parliamentary Commissioner and can only receive complaints through members of Parliament. He cannot start an investigation on his own.
Hong Kong has registered spectacular results in the fight against corruption. When corruption in the police force peaked in the 1970s, the government set up an Independent Commission Against Corruption and gave it full powers to investigate and punish the guilty. It sacked 119 of the 180 police officers in one go, sending a strong message to the rest of the force and other government functionaries.
Several Asian countries including South Korea have since created similar anti-corruption mechanisms.(Source: TOI,The Crest Edition,April 9, 2011)
The ombudsman can take suo moto cognizance of public grievances and either launch an investigation himself or hire a private agency for the purpose. In Sweden and Finland, the ombudsman has the power to prosecute erring public servants but in Denmark he can only order prosecution.
In all these countries, the power of prosecution is rarely used. The ombudsman relies more on the publicity attached to its office and the negative impact of an investigation on the career of an official. In Sweden and Finland, the ombudsman can also supervise the courts.
The UK has a similar institution, but with slightly different powers. Here, the ombudsman is known as the Parliamentary Commissioner and can only receive complaints through members of Parliament. He cannot start an investigation on his own.
Hong Kong has registered spectacular results in the fight against corruption. When corruption in the police force peaked in the 1970s, the government set up an Independent Commission Against Corruption and gave it full powers to investigate and punish the guilty. It sacked 119 of the 180 police officers in one go, sending a strong message to the rest of the force and other government functionaries.
Several Asian countries including South Korea have since created similar anti-corruption mechanisms.(Source: TOI,The Crest Edition,April 9, 2011)
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Gazette Notification issued by the government
Following is the text of the Gazette Notification issued by the government constituting the Joint Drafting Committee comprising ministers and civil society activists to prepare the draft Lok Pal Bill.
“The Joint Drafting Committee shall consist of five nominee ministers of the Government of India and five nominees of Shri Anna Hazare (including himself).
The five nominee Ministers of the Government of India are as under:
Pranab Mukherjee, Union Minister of Finance, P Chidambaram, Union Minister of Home Affairs, M Veerappa Moily, Union Minister of Law and Justice, Kapil Sibal, Union Minister of Human Resource and Development and Minister of Communication and Information Technology and Salman Khursheed, Union Minister of Water Resources and Minister of Minority Affairs.
The five nominees of Anna Hazare (including himself) are as under:
Anna Hazare, Justice N Santosh Hegde, Shanti Bhushan, Senior Advocate, Prashan Bhushan, Advocate and Arvind Kejriwal.
The Chairperson of the Joint Drafting Committee shall be Pranab Mukherjee.
The Co-Chairperson of the Joint Drafting Committee shall be Shanti Bhushan.
The Convenor of the Join Drafting Committee shall be M Veerappa Moily.
The Joint Drafting Committee shall commence its work forthwith and evolve its own procedure to prepare the proposed legislation.
The Joint Drafting Committee shall complete its work latest by 30th June, 2011.”
“The Joint Drafting Committee shall consist of five nominee ministers of the Government of India and five nominees of Shri Anna Hazare (including himself).
The five nominee Ministers of the Government of India are as under:
Pranab Mukherjee, Union Minister of Finance, P Chidambaram, Union Minister of Home Affairs, M Veerappa Moily, Union Minister of Law and Justice, Kapil Sibal, Union Minister of Human Resource and Development and Minister of Communication and Information Technology and Salman Khursheed, Union Minister of Water Resources and Minister of Minority Affairs.
The five nominees of Anna Hazare (including himself) are as under:
Anna Hazare, Justice N Santosh Hegde, Shanti Bhushan, Senior Advocate, Prashan Bhushan, Advocate and Arvind Kejriwal.
The Chairperson of the Joint Drafting Committee shall be Pranab Mukherjee.
The Co-Chairperson of the Joint Drafting Committee shall be Shanti Bhushan.
The Convenor of the Join Drafting Committee shall be M Veerappa Moily.
The Joint Drafting Committee shall commence its work forthwith and evolve its own procedure to prepare the proposed legislation.
The Joint Drafting Committee shall complete its work latest by 30th June, 2011.”
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Poverty in India
What is Poverty?
According to the World Bank (2000), “poverty is pronounced deprivation in wellbeing.” Well-being is defined as the command over commodities in general, so people are better off if they have a greater command over resources. The main focus is on whether households or individuals have enough resources to meet their needs. Typically, poverty is then measured by comparing individuals’ income or consumption with some defined threshold below which they are considered to be poor. This is the most conventional view—poverty is seen largely in monetary terms—and is the starting point for most analyses of poverty.
Perhaps the broadest approach to well-being is the one articulated by Amartya Sen (1987), who argues that well-being comes from a capability to function in society. Thus, poverty arises when people lack key capabilities, and so have inadequate income or education, or poor health, or insecurity, or low self-confidence, or a sense of powerlessness, or the absence of rights such as freedom of speech.
Why should poverty be measured?
There are four reasons to measure poverty:
• To keep poor people on the agenda
• To be able to identify poor people and so to be able to target appropriate interventions
• To monitor and evaluate projects and policy interventions geared to poor people
• To evaluate the effectiveness of institutions whose goal is to help poor people.
What are the aggregate measures of poverty?
A number of aggregate measures of poverty can be computed.
Headcount Index
By far, the most widely used measure is the headcount index, which simply measures the proportion of the population that is counted as poor, often denoted by P0. Formally,
4
where Np is the number of poor and N is the total population (or sample). If 60 people are poor in a survey that samples 300 people, then P0 = 60/300 = 0.2 = 20 percent.
The greatest virtues of the headcount index are that it is simple to construct and easy to understand. These are important qualities. However, the measure has at least three weaknesses:
First, the headcount index does not take the intensity of poverty into account.
Second, the headcount index does not indicate how poor the poor are, and hence does not change if people below the poverty line become poorer.
Third, the poverty estimates should be calculated for individuals, not households.
Poverty Gap Index
A moderately popular measure of poverty is the poverty gap index, which adds up the extent to which individuals on average fall below the poverty line, and expresses it as a percentage of the poverty line.
Sen Index
Sen (1976) proposed an index that seeks to combine the effects of the number of poor, the depth of their poverty, and the distribution of poverty within the group.
What is poverty line?
The first step in estimating poverty is to define and quantify a poverty line. The idea of poverty line was first mooted by the Indian Labour Conference in 1957. The poverty line in India was quantified for the first time in 1962 by a Working Group of the Planning Commission in terms of a minimum requirement (food and nonfood) of individuals for healthy living. The money value of the minimum requirement was set as per capita consumption expenditure of Rs.20 per month at 1960-1961 prices and was termed as the poverty line.
The Task Force on Projection of Minimum Needs and Effective Consumption Demand constituted by the Planning Commission in 1979 defined the poverty line as per capita consumption expenditure level, which meets the average per capita daily calorie requirement of 2400 kcal per capita per day in rural areas and 2100 kcal per capita per day in urban areas along with a minimum of nonfood expenditure. It used the age-sex-activity specific calorie allowances recommended by the Nutrition Expert Group (1968) to estimate the average daily per capita requirement for rural and urban areas using the age-sex-occupational structure of their respective population.
The Task Force used the 28th Round (1973-1974) National Sample Survey (NSS) data on household consumption both in quantitative and value terms in order to compute the monetary equivalent of these calorie norms. Based on the observed consumer behavior in 1973-1974 it was estimated that, on average, consumer expenditure of Rs. 49.09 per capita per month meets the calorie requirement of 2400 kcal per capita per day in rural areas, and Rs. 56.64 per capita per month with an intake of 2100 kcal per capita per day in urban areas. These poverty lines expressed in terms of per capita consumption expenditure conform to a consumption basket, which satisfies the above calorie norm and meets a minimum of nonfood requirements, such as clothing, shelter, transport, etc. Thus, the concept of poverty line used here was partly normative and partly behavioral.
The poverty lines for later years were estimated by updating the 1973-1974 poverty line initially by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI). The use of WPI became controversial as it comprised a range of items (about half of its weight) that are not meant for private consumption at all. Besides, consumers buy goods at retail and not at wholesale prices. The Study Group on Estimation of Poverty Line, constituted by the Planning Commission during the Seventh Five Year Plan (1985-1990), recommended use of private consumption deflator of the CSO to update the 1973-1974 poverty lines for later years.
The same poverty line defined at national level (separately for rural and urban areas) was used in all the States/Union Territories (UTs).
The Task Force’s methodology for quantifying poverty lines was regarded by some as inappropriate and even inadequate in giving a representative picture of the incidence of poverty in India. The main points of the criticism, insofar as the poverty line was concerned, included:
(i) choice of deflators to represent price changes in the poverty line;
(ii) application of the same poverty line in all the states, which imply the absence of price differentials across the states;
(iii) use of a fixed consumption basket over time; and
(iv) uniform consumption basket for all the states.
The Planning Commission in September 1989 constituted the Expert Group on Estimation of Proportion and Number of Poor to examine the methodology used for estimation of poverty and “re-define the poverty line, if necessary.”
The Expert Group did not find it necessary to redefine the poverty line. It accepted the Task Force poverty lines, which were available in rural and urban areas at the national level. However, given interstate variation in prices, the Expert Group disaggregated these national level poverty lines of the Task Force into state-specific poverty lines using state-specific price indices and interstate price differential. The important points of departure between the Expert Group and the Task Force methodology insofar as the poverty line was concerned were:
(i) The Expert Group used state-specific poverty lines against a national poverty line for rural and urban areas.
(ii) The Expert Group suggested use of state-specific cost of living indices for estimating and updating the poverty line separately for rural and urban areas. The Task Force estimates were based on one national index, which is same for all the states and also for rural and urban areas. The Expert Group methodology used state-specific Consumer Price Index of Agricultural Labourers (CPIAL) for estimating and updating the rural poverty line and the simple average of the Consumer Price Index of Industrial Workers (CPIIW) and Consumer Price Index of Urban Non-manual Employees (CPIUNM) for estimating and updating the urban poverty line.
It should be noted that the Planning Commission decided to modify slightly the Expert Group
method for poverty estimation in the urban areas. It uses only the Consumer Price Index of Industrial
Workers (CPIIW) for estimating and updating the urban poverty lines.
The estimation of poverty lines by the Expert Group method as used in the Planning Commission is as follows:
2. Rural Poverty Lines
The Expert Group disaggregated the national rural poverty line of Task Force (which is monthly per capita consumer expenditure of Rs. 49.09 in 1973-1974) into state-specific poverty lines using indices of interstate price differential measured by Fisher’s Index. These state-specific poverty lines of 1973-1974 are updated for later years using state-specific price indices especially constructed by averaging the Consumer Price Index of Agricultural Labourers (CPIAL) of (a) food, (b) fuel and light, (c) clothing and footwear, and (d) miscellaneous items with their respective weights in the consumption basket of the poor in 1973-1974 at the national level.
2 The Expert Group submitted its Report in July 1993. The Government has adopted the Expert Group methodology for poverty estimation since March 1997 as the basis for computing the official estimates of poverty in India.
3. Urban Poverty Lines
The Expert Group disaggregated the national urban poverty line of the Task Force (which is monthly per capita consumer expenditure of Rs. 56.64 in 1973-1974) into state-specific poverty lines using indices of interstate price differential measured by Fisher’s Index. These state-specific poverty lines of 1973-1974 are updated for later years using especially constructed state-specific price indices by averaging the Consumer Price Index (CPI) of Industrial Workers, of (a) food; (b) fuel and light; (c) housing; (d) clothing, bedding, and footwear; and (e) miscellaneous with their respective weights in the consumption basket of the poor at national level in 1973-1974. The commodity composition of the basket of the persons around the poverty line in 1973- 1974 at national level in rural and urban areas is as follows:
4. National Poverty Lines
The Expert Group has estimated state-specific poverty lines. It does not specifically estimate the national level poverty lines. The national poverty lines are worked out from the national level expenditure distribution obtained from the NSS data on consumer expenditure and the national level poverty ratio. The national level poverty ratio, on the other hand, is estimated as a weighted average of state-wise poverty ratios. Hence, the estimate of national level poverty line in the Expert Group method is implicit. below.
5. The Poverty Ratio
With the poverty lines quantified, the Expert Group estimated the percentage of people whose consumption expenditures fell below the poverty line, also known as the poverty ratio, in rural and urban areas for the same years. Between 1973-1974 and 1993-1994, the poverty ratio fell by about one percentage point annually. The absolute decline of the poverty ratio during this period was greater in rural (19.1 percentage points) than in urban areas (16.6 percentage points), while the rate of decline remained the same (2.1 percent per year) for both areas. The rate of decline was much faster during the
According to the World Bank (2000), “poverty is pronounced deprivation in wellbeing.” Well-being is defined as the command over commodities in general, so people are better off if they have a greater command over resources. The main focus is on whether households or individuals have enough resources to meet their needs. Typically, poverty is then measured by comparing individuals’ income or consumption with some defined threshold below which they are considered to be poor. This is the most conventional view—poverty is seen largely in monetary terms—and is the starting point for most analyses of poverty.
Perhaps the broadest approach to well-being is the one articulated by Amartya Sen (1987), who argues that well-being comes from a capability to function in society. Thus, poverty arises when people lack key capabilities, and so have inadequate income or education, or poor health, or insecurity, or low self-confidence, or a sense of powerlessness, or the absence of rights such as freedom of speech.
Why should poverty be measured?
There are four reasons to measure poverty:
• To keep poor people on the agenda
• To be able to identify poor people and so to be able to target appropriate interventions
• To monitor and evaluate projects and policy interventions geared to poor people
• To evaluate the effectiveness of institutions whose goal is to help poor people.
What are the aggregate measures of poverty?
A number of aggregate measures of poverty can be computed.
Headcount Index
By far, the most widely used measure is the headcount index, which simply measures the proportion of the population that is counted as poor, often denoted by P0. Formally,
4
where Np is the number of poor and N is the total population (or sample). If 60 people are poor in a survey that samples 300 people, then P0 = 60/300 = 0.2 = 20 percent.
The greatest virtues of the headcount index are that it is simple to construct and easy to understand. These are important qualities. However, the measure has at least three weaknesses:
First, the headcount index does not take the intensity of poverty into account.
Second, the headcount index does not indicate how poor the poor are, and hence does not change if people below the poverty line become poorer.
Third, the poverty estimates should be calculated for individuals, not households.
Poverty Gap Index
A moderately popular measure of poverty is the poverty gap index, which adds up the extent to which individuals on average fall below the poverty line, and expresses it as a percentage of the poverty line.
Sen Index
Sen (1976) proposed an index that seeks to combine the effects of the number of poor, the depth of their poverty, and the distribution of poverty within the group.
What is poverty line?
The first step in estimating poverty is to define and quantify a poverty line. The idea of poverty line was first mooted by the Indian Labour Conference in 1957. The poverty line in India was quantified for the first time in 1962 by a Working Group of the Planning Commission in terms of a minimum requirement (food and nonfood) of individuals for healthy living. The money value of the minimum requirement was set as per capita consumption expenditure of Rs.20 per month at 1960-1961 prices and was termed as the poverty line.
The Task Force on Projection of Minimum Needs and Effective Consumption Demand constituted by the Planning Commission in 1979 defined the poverty line as per capita consumption expenditure level, which meets the average per capita daily calorie requirement of 2400 kcal per capita per day in rural areas and 2100 kcal per capita per day in urban areas along with a minimum of nonfood expenditure. It used the age-sex-activity specific calorie allowances recommended by the Nutrition Expert Group (1968) to estimate the average daily per capita requirement for rural and urban areas using the age-sex-occupational structure of their respective population.
The Task Force used the 28th Round (1973-1974) National Sample Survey (NSS) data on household consumption both in quantitative and value terms in order to compute the monetary equivalent of these calorie norms. Based on the observed consumer behavior in 1973-1974 it was estimated that, on average, consumer expenditure of Rs. 49.09 per capita per month meets the calorie requirement of 2400 kcal per capita per day in rural areas, and Rs. 56.64 per capita per month with an intake of 2100 kcal per capita per day in urban areas. These poverty lines expressed in terms of per capita consumption expenditure conform to a consumption basket, which satisfies the above calorie norm and meets a minimum of nonfood requirements, such as clothing, shelter, transport, etc. Thus, the concept of poverty line used here was partly normative and partly behavioral.
The poverty lines for later years were estimated by updating the 1973-1974 poverty line initially by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI). The use of WPI became controversial as it comprised a range of items (about half of its weight) that are not meant for private consumption at all. Besides, consumers buy goods at retail and not at wholesale prices. The Study Group on Estimation of Poverty Line, constituted by the Planning Commission during the Seventh Five Year Plan (1985-1990), recommended use of private consumption deflator of the CSO to update the 1973-1974 poverty lines for later years.
The same poverty line defined at national level (separately for rural and urban areas) was used in all the States/Union Territories (UTs).
The Task Force’s methodology for quantifying poverty lines was regarded by some as inappropriate and even inadequate in giving a representative picture of the incidence of poverty in India. The main points of the criticism, insofar as the poverty line was concerned, included:
(i) choice of deflators to represent price changes in the poverty line;
(ii) application of the same poverty line in all the states, which imply the absence of price differentials across the states;
(iii) use of a fixed consumption basket over time; and
(iv) uniform consumption basket for all the states.
The Planning Commission in September 1989 constituted the Expert Group on Estimation of Proportion and Number of Poor to examine the methodology used for estimation of poverty and “re-define the poverty line, if necessary.”
The Expert Group did not find it necessary to redefine the poverty line. It accepted the Task Force poverty lines, which were available in rural and urban areas at the national level. However, given interstate variation in prices, the Expert Group disaggregated these national level poverty lines of the Task Force into state-specific poverty lines using state-specific price indices and interstate price differential. The important points of departure between the Expert Group and the Task Force methodology insofar as the poverty line was concerned were:
(i) The Expert Group used state-specific poverty lines against a national poverty line for rural and urban areas.
(ii) The Expert Group suggested use of state-specific cost of living indices for estimating and updating the poverty line separately for rural and urban areas. The Task Force estimates were based on one national index, which is same for all the states and also for rural and urban areas. The Expert Group methodology used state-specific Consumer Price Index of Agricultural Labourers (CPIAL) for estimating and updating the rural poverty line and the simple average of the Consumer Price Index of Industrial Workers (CPIIW) and Consumer Price Index of Urban Non-manual Employees (CPIUNM) for estimating and updating the urban poverty line.
It should be noted that the Planning Commission decided to modify slightly the Expert Group
method for poverty estimation in the urban areas. It uses only the Consumer Price Index of Industrial
Workers (CPIIW) for estimating and updating the urban poverty lines.
The estimation of poverty lines by the Expert Group method as used in the Planning Commission is as follows:
2. Rural Poverty Lines
The Expert Group disaggregated the national rural poverty line of Task Force (which is monthly per capita consumer expenditure of Rs. 49.09 in 1973-1974) into state-specific poverty lines using indices of interstate price differential measured by Fisher’s Index. These state-specific poverty lines of 1973-1974 are updated for later years using state-specific price indices especially constructed by averaging the Consumer Price Index of Agricultural Labourers (CPIAL) of (a) food, (b) fuel and light, (c) clothing and footwear, and (d) miscellaneous items with their respective weights in the consumption basket of the poor in 1973-1974 at the national level.
2 The Expert Group submitted its Report in July 1993. The Government has adopted the Expert Group methodology for poverty estimation since March 1997 as the basis for computing the official estimates of poverty in India.
3. Urban Poverty Lines
The Expert Group disaggregated the national urban poverty line of the Task Force (which is monthly per capita consumer expenditure of Rs. 56.64 in 1973-1974) into state-specific poverty lines using indices of interstate price differential measured by Fisher’s Index. These state-specific poverty lines of 1973-1974 are updated for later years using especially constructed state-specific price indices by averaging the Consumer Price Index (CPI) of Industrial Workers, of (a) food; (b) fuel and light; (c) housing; (d) clothing, bedding, and footwear; and (e) miscellaneous with their respective weights in the consumption basket of the poor at national level in 1973-1974. The commodity composition of the basket of the persons around the poverty line in 1973- 1974 at national level in rural and urban areas is as follows:
4. National Poverty Lines
The Expert Group has estimated state-specific poverty lines. It does not specifically estimate the national level poverty lines. The national poverty lines are worked out from the national level expenditure distribution obtained from the NSS data on consumer expenditure and the national level poverty ratio. The national level poverty ratio, on the other hand, is estimated as a weighted average of state-wise poverty ratios. Hence, the estimate of national level poverty line in the Expert Group method is implicit. below.
5. The Poverty Ratio
With the poverty lines quantified, the Expert Group estimated the percentage of people whose consumption expenditures fell below the poverty line, also known as the poverty ratio, in rural and urban areas for the same years. Between 1973-1974 and 1993-1994, the poverty ratio fell by about one percentage point annually. The absolute decline of the poverty ratio during this period was greater in rural (19.1 percentage points) than in urban areas (16.6 percentage points), while the rate of decline remained the same (2.1 percent per year) for both areas. The rate of decline was much faster during the
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