#CityConversations

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#TowardsAccountability

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Dr Munawer Khwaja (Fiscal Economist, Former Technical Advisor, Fiscal Affairs Department, International Monetary Fund) on Are We in Good Hands? Is Tax Administration in India Following Good International Practices?

When: April 22, 2021 (Thursday); 18:00 IST | REGISTER HERE

Discussant: Prof Indira Iyer (National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), New Delhi)

From our partners:

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People’s Participation in City Planning: Bottom-up planning; Participatory Design; Consultative Practice – How do we generate inclusive and people-centric cities?
#StudioINHAF #Rethinking #Cities #Webinar48 #RethinkingCities

Register Here: https://bit.ly/3s31smi
Date: April 12, 2021
Time: 4:30-6:30 PM (India), 8:00-10:00 AM (Brazil), 7:00-9:00 PM (Philippines)

Speakers:
Aravind Unni (Indo-Global Social Service Society), Shalaka (Main Bhi Dilli, Delhi), Dinesh Abrol (Gurgaon water forum & TRCSS, JNU, Delhi), Fabricio Leal De Oliveira (Ippur Ufrj), Marina Joseph (Youth for Unity and Voluntary Action - YUVA), Rumi Aijaz (Observer Research Foundation, Delhi), Mary Racelis (Ateneo de Manila, School of Social Sciences, Manila, Philippines), Kaustuv Bandyopadhyay (PRIA (Society for Participatory Research In Asia), India)

#BOTTOMUPPLANNING #CITYPLANNING #CONSULTATIVEPRACTICE #PARTICIPATORYDESIGN #PEOPLECENTRICCITIES

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Bengal Polls 2021: What BJP promises, what BJP delivers by Basant Kumar Mohanty | The Telegraph

One of the experts doubtful about the BJP’s promise to Bengal is economist and former JNU professor Santosh Mehrotra, who has edited the book Revising Jobs an Agenda For Growth that sums up the job situation under BJP rule. Mehrotra accepted that the job situation had suffered during the last couple of years of UPA rule too, but said the persistent decline under Modi’s rule was a result of policy decisions and, therefore, more worrying.

“A policy paralysis after the corruption allegations — some of it still unproven — a global slowdown after 2011, over-lending by the banks were serious problems (that hurt the economy during the UPA’s last years in power),” he said.

Arjun Kumar, director of the Impact and Policy Research Institute, a private think tank, said the demonetisation had shaken the confidence of potential employers and the subsequent economic slowdown had affected job creation.

Labour minister Santosh Gangwar had told the Rajya Sabha on March 24 that the Centre was adopting measures like the Atmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana under which the government paid the EPFO contributions for two years for private-sector employees who earned salaries below a cut-off. Gangwar also cited the PM Svanidhi Scheme under which collateral-free loans up to Rs 10,000 are given to street vendors “Employment generation coupled with improving employability is the priority of the government. The government is providing fiscal stimulus of more than Rs 27 lakh crore as part of the Atmanirbhar financial package,” he said.

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Modi’s Claim of His Arrest for Bangladesh Satyagraha Deconstructed by Gouri Sankar Nag | IMPRI

Even if we put things in a historical perspective, we would see that the struggle in East Bengal did not begin as a planned nationalist movement for liberation from Pakistan. It was a historical conjuncture of events in the late 1960s that lent the popular mobilization in East Bengal sort of anti-imperialist character vis-à-vis the role and hostile attitude of Pakistan. Ideologically it was also a mismatch to Sangh Parivar to take up the cause of the liberation of Bangladesh.

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Chandni Chowk Redevelopment: The Disappearance of the Erstwhile and the Present by Tikender Singh Panwar, Anjali Ojha | IMPRI

The green cover has completely been removed. Instead of planting trees at the center, all of them have been removed and during summers one will have a heat island effect. Since Chandni Chowk is a large wholesale market where hundreds of trucks enter and leave during the night, the red sandstone used will not even last for a year, given the strength of the load-bearing capacity of these stones. These have already started breaking and will not sustain for long. Instead, what the redevelopment project should have envisaged is to have an extensive dialogue with not only the important stakeholders but also people by large.

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Resurgence of Coronavirus and its impact: Six Unlearnt Lessons by Arun Kumar | IMPRI

Nothing can be said with certainty since not enough is known about the virus and the course of the disease in coming months. Models suggest that our medical systems may get overwhelmed in some areas and consequently the number of deaths may rise. If that happens, lockdowns may become more intense, even if locally and not nationally. That would impact both demand and supply and slow down the economy.

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Buckeye Bridge Lecture Series: Dr Simi Mehta (CEO and Editorial Director, IMPRI) discussed Sustainability and Climate Change, as part of the series organised by the Ohio State University, USA

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#EmploymentDebate and Book Discussion: Prof K. R. Shyam Sundar (Professor, HRM Area, XLRI – Xavier School of Management, Jamshedpur, Jharkhand) on Impact of COVID-19, Reforms and Poor Governance on Labor Rights

Chair: Prof Praveen Jha (Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi)
Book Release and Opening Remarks: Prof D. N. Reddy (Formerly, University of Hyderabad)
Discussants: Ramapriya Gopalakrishnan (ILO Consultant and Labour Advocate, Chennai), Prof Babu Mathew (NLSIU, Bengaluru) and Dr Radhicka Kapoor (ICRIER, New Delhi)

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Press Coverage: The Hindu | The Pioneer | APN News | B4U Media | Easy Shiksha | India Education Diary | The Avenue Mail

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#PlanetTalks: Shripad Dharmadhikary (Founder-coordinator, Manthan Adhyayan Kendra) on How Much Water Do We Really Need?: Sustainability of Water Systems in India

Moderated by Dr Simi Mehta (IMPRI), with discussant Dr Indira Khurana (Tarun Bharat Sangh)