Indias Left parties have traditionally been able to demonstrate a degree of inner-party democracy that denies the Stalinist record of their cousins elsewhere, while also avoiding the building up of

Contradictions galore

Business Standard

With corporate profits growing rapidly, it should be no surprise that salary increases have remained at close to three times inflation rates. Capacity utilisation in most industries has been nearing

Prosperous times

There is nothing like double standards for stifling moral values and nowhere do such values fall victim as often as in politics. So it comes as no surprise that the Congress should be twisting and

Act now

The flow of bank credit to small scale industries, never commensurate with their requirements, has been even lower than usual in recent years.


Financing SMEs

Gold has been the conventional hedge against uncertainty and risk. At the first sign of a crisis, investors flock to gold, forsaking paper assets. And theres little doubt that at present theres no

What gold prices say

While most of the auto industry continues to remain in denial, there is little doubt that the sector appears headed for a suddenly bumpy road. 


Lower gear

The Prime Minister managed to sound a purposeful note in his Independence Day address from Red Fort in the capital. 


And the second leg?

One of the abiding problems in India has been the over-arching reach of politics into private domains.


Hands off

Biotechnology companies are reported to be losing interest in committing fresh investments in evolving new genetically modified (GM) seeds. This is borne out by the perceptible decline in the number

GM loses sheen

After dithering on the issue for years, the Securities and Exchange Board of India is finally summoning the courage to tackle some of the abuses of IPO allotments.


Open up IPOs

The information and broadcasting (I&amp;B) ministrys decision to stick to the overall cap of 26 per cent for both foreign direct investment (FDI) as well as foreign institutional investors (FII) in

Irrational controls

The Indian primary markets brief honeymoon with discretionary allotments for qualified institutional investors has ended. 


By the book

You have to hand it to Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar. When hes convinced of something, he keeps at it. So, when the Synergy in Energy committee that he set up to recommend merging of the oil

Merger, he said

Hand-overs of corporate batons are typically well choreographed affairs. So it is with Harish Manwanis taking over as non-executive chairman from M S Banga at a company that has pretty much defined

Three Ms of marketing

In order to stay relevant, social organisations need to re-invent themselves from time to time. This is especially true of political parties. The goings-on within the BJP, between it and the RSS, as

Soul-searching in BJP

Life cant be easy for the countrys district administrators who are ultimately responsible for all relief work. 


Disastrous management

For a long time, Delhi was symbolic of the countrys deepening urban transportation problems. Public bus services rapidly declining in quantity and quality, and rapacious taxi and three-wheeler

Model metro

The security forces at Ayodhya, the state government in UP, the central government and, above all, the people of our country must be congratulated for keeping their heads after the abortive attempt by

Healthy composure

India has become a global hot spot for mergers and acquisitions. The number of M&amp;A deals in India in the first half of 2005 increased by a huge 80 per cent compared to a rise of 5.40 per cent

Acquiring confidence

Having got the government on the back foot on the issue of disinvestment, it was always obvious the Left parties were going to step up the pressure to scrap the recent Indo-US security pact, for

Big boys` club

There comes a time in the life of governments when people start to view them with cynicism. That moment appears to have come for the UPA government. 


Absurd governance

Incisive columns and editorial comment by top opinion leaders

Page 306 - Editorial Comment