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Journalism of Courage
With due respect, Bibek Debroy8217;s single paragraph dismissal of the case for an Employment Guarantee Act 8216;Jobs, not the government8217;s job8217;, IE, October 13 is a morass of confusion. The argument is based on a superficial comparison with the public distribution system, which is neither here nor there. The author suggests that instead of an Employment Guarantee Act, the government should provide an unemployment insurance of Rs 100 per day. This proposal is a non-starter since there is no simple way of identifying the unemployed. Debroy is right in pointing out that an effective Employment Guarantee Act requires a credible 8216;8216;delivery mechanism8217;8217;. The experience of relief works in a drought situation shows that such a mechanism can be put in place in most states, when rural employment is a political priority. The adoption of an Employment Guarantee Act will greatly help to create the required sense of urgency.
8212; Jean Dreze Allahabad
Kaun banega CM?
8226; The victory of the Nationalist Congress Party-Congress alliance in Maharashtra truly belongs to Sharad Pawar. Hopefully 71 seats should clinch the chief minister8217;s post for the NCP vide formula 8217;99.
8212; Raghubir Singh Pune
Ridiculous dismissal
8226; It is indeed unfortunate that a school has decided to ask Veerappan8217;s daughter to leave 8216;School to throw out Veerappan8217;s daughter8217;, IE, October 20. What control could this child possibly have had on her father8217;s actions? Punishing an innocent child for no fault of hers is ridiculous.
8212; R. Venugopal Damascus
Mystifying merger
8226; Your editorial 8216;Join the Party! The more the Congress changes, the more it remains the same8217; October 12 has been written in the immediate context of the return of Bansi Lal and his Haryana Vikas Party to the Congress prior to the February 2005 assembly elections. It may be remembered that the HVP got only 6 per cent of the vote in the May 2004 Lok Sabha election and drew a blank in terms of seats. Bansi Lal is now a spent force and the Congress hardly needs such a relic of its Emergency past. With men like these back in the Congress, an alliance between Om Prakash Chautala8217;s Indian National Lok Dal and the BJP may well be revived and the only way out may be for Congress President Sonia Gandhi to pick as her mascot a clean, well-educated, young leader like Selja.
8212; Vinod Chowdhury Delhi
They all plan
8226; This refers to Jaithirth Rao8217;s article about the Planning Commission 8216;Planning for the Commission8217;, IE, October 15. Many countries have a department or at least a cell for planning though it may not be known by the same name as our organisation. The European Economic Commission, for instance, has many plan panels in diverse fields. France believes in indicative planning.
8212; G. Sundaram On e-mail
