223 research outputs found
Globalisation, labour markets and international adjustment - Essays in honour of Palle S Andersen
No full textInequality in India: A survey of recent trends
No full textThis paper analyses the nature and causes of the patterns of inequality and poverty in India. Since the economic liberalization in the early 1990s, the evidence suggests increasing inequality (in both spatial and vertical terms) as well as persistent poverty. The macroeconomic policies possibly responsible for these trends include—fiscal tightening, regressive tax policies and expenditure cuts; financial sector reform that reduced institutional credit flow to small producers and agriculturalists; liberalization of rules for foreign and domestic investment, leading to more regional imbalance and skewed investment patterns, and trade liberalization, which has affected livelihoods and employment generation.India, inequality, poverty, growth and distribution, macroeconomic policies
Vijay Tendulkar's Feminist Perspectives: A Study of Women's Representation in Indian Drama
No full text<p><em><span>Vijay Tendulkar has emerged as a prominent personality in the Indian theatrical realm, making essential contributions to Indian drama through his excellent plays. In addition to his accomplishments as a Marathi playwright, he has also achieved recognition and appreciation in the field of Indian drama. The author has created numerous theatrical pieces that delve into various elements and themes, with a particular emphasis on depicting women and the obstacles they encounter within social frameworks. The representation of women is a focal point in his plays. The author explores both the susceptible and durable components of their existence. This article analyzes the academic accomplishments of Tendulkar in the realm of feminism. Several prominent female characters operate as mirrors of the societal standards and ideals that came before our time.</span></em></p>
SOCIO-CULTURAL COMPLEXITIES AND LESBIAN LOVE AND ATTRACTION IN VIJAY TENDULKAR’S A FRIEND’S STORY
No full text LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) rights is a sensitive topic that triggers a debate even today. Well-known playwright Vijay Tendulkar‟s Marathi play Mitrachi Goshta, translated into English by Gowri Ramnarayan in 2001 under the title A Friend‟s Story, portrays the theme of lesbianism. His play was published during the time when homosexuality was forbidden as a criminal act and also considered as a sin. Contrary to the common belief of his times, Tendulkar‟s play highlights how important it is to be respectful and sensitive to others irrespective of their sexual orientations. He captures the conflict between individual desire and social acceptance. As a humanist, rather than a rigid conformist, the playwright stands up for individual freedom when there is clash between individuals and society. Though, the bold theme of lesbianism in a literary work was very risky, in the then society, it did not discourage Vijay Tendulkar of his conviction. This paper critically examines the depiction of socio-cultural complexities related to lesbian love and attraction in Vijay Tendulkar‟s play A Friend's Story. </p
Pro-poor growth : A primer
No full textThese days it seems that almost everyone in the development community is talking about"pro-poor growth."What exactly is it, and how can we measure it? Is ordinary economic growth always"pro-poor growth"or is that some special kind of growth? And if it is something special, what makes it happen? The author first reviews alternative approaches to defining and measuring"pro-poor growth."He then analyzes evidence on whether growth is pro-poor, what factors make it more pro-poor (including the role played by both initial inequality and changing inequality), and whether the factors that make the distribution of the gains from growth pro-poor come at a cost to growth. The author identifies some priorities for future research.Poverty Reduction Strategies,Services&Transfers to Poor,Public Health Promotion,Economic Conditions and Volatility,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Achieving Shared Growth,Governance Indicators,Economic Conditions and Volatility,Inequality,Services&Transfers to Poor
Determinants of Firm-level Export Performance: A Case Study of Indian Textile Garments and Apparel Industry
No full textDrawing on international trade and industrial organisation theories, this paper identifies variable affecting (a) export decision function i.e. to export or sell in domestic market, and (b) export performance function i.e. share of exports in output. These functions are estimated for Garment and Apparel producing units in Delhi. Form of business organisation reflecting access to capital turns out to be a key determinant in both functions. Estimated marginal impact of identified variables (scale and share of sales expenses) on the probability of exporting in estimated Probit model declines sharply in making from single proprietorship to partnership and further to limited companies. On the other hand, every single determinant (scale, share of wages, share of sales expenses and technical efficiency) has found to have increasing marginal impact on export performance in estimated Tobit model in moving across the three forms of business organisation. Empirical results suggest two policy changes to boost export performance. One, given the importance of scale for exports, the existing policy of reserving garments and apparel for exclusive production in small scale units needs to be scrapped. Simultaneously, it is also necessary to amend current labour legislation applicable to large scale factory units as it introduces labour market inflexibility and hence serves as an impediment to expansion of existing units and entry of new units.Tobit Model, Business Organization, Economies of Scale
Poverty decline, agricultural wages, and non-farm employment in rural India : 1983-2004
No full textThe authors analyze five rounds of National Sample Survey data covering 1983, 1987/8, 1993/4, 1999/0, and 2004/5 to explore the relationship between rural diversification and poverty. Poverty in rural India declined at a modest rate during this period. The authors provide region-level estimates that illustrate considerable geographic heterogeneity in this progress. Poverty estimates correlate well with region-level data on changes in agricultural wage rates. Agricultural labor remains the preserve of the uneducated and also to a large extent of the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. Although agricultural labor grew as a share of total economic activity over the first four rounds, it had fallen back to the levels observed at the beginning of the survey period by 2004. This all-India trajectory masks widely varying trends across states. During this period, the rural non-farm sector grew modestly, mainly between the last two survey rounds. Regular non-farm employment remains largely associated with education levels and social status that are rare among the poor. However, casual labor and self-employment in the non-farm sector reveal greater involvement by disadvantaged groups in 2004 than in the preceding rounds. The implication for poverty is not immediately clear - the poor may be pushed into low-return casual non-farm activities due to lack of opportunities in the agricultural sector rather than being pulled by high returns offered by the non-farm sector. Econometric estimates reveal that expansion of the non-farm sector is associated with falling poverty via two routes: a direct impact on poverty that is likely due to a pro-poor marginal incidence of non-farm employment expansion; and an indirect impact attributable to the positive effect of non-farm employment growth on agricultural wages. The analysis also confirms the important contribution to rural poverty reduction from agricultural productivity, availability of land, and consumption levels in proximate urban areas.Rural Poverty Reduction,Labor Markets,Labor Policies,Crops&Crop Management Systems
Near IR Astrometry of Magnetars
No full textWe report on the progress of our five-year program for astrometric monitoring of magnetars using high-resolution NIR observations using the laser guide star adaptive optics (LGS-AO) supported NIRC2 camera on the 10-meter Keck telescope. We have measured the proper motion of two of the youngest magnetars, SGR 1806–20 and SGR 1900+14, which have counterparts with K ~21 mag, and have placed a preliminary upper limit on the motion of the young AXP 1E 1841–045. The precision of the proper motion measurement is at the milliarcsecond per year level. Our proper motion measurements now provide evidence to link SGR 1806–20 and SGR 1900+14 with neighboring young star clusters. At the distances of these magnetars, their proper motion corresponds to transverse space velocities of 350 ± 100 km s^(−1) and 130 ± 30 km s^(−1) respectively. The upper limit on the proper motion of AXP 1E 1841–045 is 160 km s^(−1). With the sample of proper motions available, we conclude that the kinematics of the magnetar family are not distinct from that of pulsars
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