Mainstream Weekly

Most recent articles

• Labour Absorption: A Unique Strength of the Informal Sector in India

  6 June 2009, by Vinod K Anand

  The end objective of a nation, notwithstanding its economic, political, and social scenarios and the accompanying constraints, is the “well-being” of its people. The multi-faceted connotation of “well-being” is captured by what is termed in Economics as development with its focus both on growth and distribution, and also their interlinks. The important issue is whether the link runs from growth to distribution or the other way round. Since the 1950s much of the focus has been on the link (…)

• Twenty Years after Tiananmen Crackdown

  6 June 2009, by Nimmi Kurian

  June 4, 2009 marks the twentieth anniversary of the massacre of countless Chinese students and youth at Beijing’s famous Tiananmen Square. On this occasion we are reproducing, with due acknowledgement, an article published in The Indian Express (June 2, 2009) on the Chinese political landscape 20 years after Tiananmen and a moving poem by the celebrated Vikram Seth on the massacre [that appeared in The Times of India (June 6, 1989
  . We are also reproducing the Political Notebook written on (…)

• China Today and Tomorrow

  6 June 2009, by SC

  Figures have lost all meaning in the conditions prevailing in the People’s Republic of China today. The fact is that what began in the early hours of June 4, 1989 at Tiananmen Square in the heart of China’s capital, Beijing, culminated in a veritable bloodbath turning the ‘Square of Heavenly Peace’ into one of earthly hell. Whether the number of those killed was 1400, 3000, 7000 or 10,000 is immaterial. It is pointless to ask if those wounded in indiscriminate firing add upto 10,000 or less. (…)

• End of Maoist Monolith

  6 June 2009, by Nikhil Chakravartty

  Anarchy has gripped China. The massacre of unarmed people by tanks and armoured carriers could not bring a semblance of order even in the capital city of Beijing. Instead, the horror of ghastly killings—estimated anywhere between 1000 to 2000 in the course of a single night—has so infuriated the citizens that spontaneous clashes with the Army are reported to be continuing in Beijing. The mood in the city is one of angry defiance.
  While the Indians in Beijing are safe, the ambassador, C.V. (…)

• ‘Fifty Per Cent Democracy’: Demolition of a Gandhian Ashram in Chhattisgarh

  6 June 2009, by Ramachandra Guha

  In the early hours of May 17, while the rest of India was asleep after an election conducted honestly and won fairly, a massive contingent of police and paramilitary descended on a Gandhian ashram in the interior of Chhattisgarh. They woke up the sleeping social workers, and gave them exactly one hour to pack their belongings. The Gandhians were then escorted outside the ashram that had been their home, thus making way for the bulldozers that had been sent for demolish it. The machines were (…)

• Fact-finding Team on Latest Developments in Chhattisgarh

  6 June 2009

  DOCUMENT
  An all-India fact-finding team visited Chhattisgarh from May 29 to June 1, 2009 in the wake of certain disturbing developments in the State plagued by Maoist violence, state terror, the Salwa Judum campaign and attacks on voluntary organisations (even Gandhian bodies) by the powers that be. The team held a press conference at the Press Club, Raipur on June 1. The following are the press release at the press conference and a memorandum on the demolition of the Vanvasi Chetna Ashram (…)

• Apex Court’s Welcome Step

  2 June 2009, by SC

  While the stand-off between the Congress and DMK on portfolio allocation and the number of berths the Tamil Nadu ruling party would have in the Union Cabinet has ended with an amicable settlement and the Council of Ministers’ expansion is due on May 28, Cyclone Alia has caused widespread havoc in south Bengal including Kolkata even as Punjab has been rocked by street protests affecting rail and road transport following the attack on leaders of the Dera Sachkhand Balan, a predominantly Dalit (…)

• Devouring Tiger: Marauding Tiger?

  2 June 2009, by Apratim Mukarji

  Velupillai Prabhakaran died the way he lived, by the bullet. The tiger of violence that he chose to ride at a young age finally devoured him. The nearly 26-year-old civil war in Sri Lanka has ended as was anticipated for sometime. Ideally, it is now time for reconciliation, rehabilitation and establish-ment of the federal constitutional structure in the island nation.
  However, in contrast to these idealistic prospects, reports from Sri Lanka continue to convey a large measure of (…)

• Lok Sabha Poll 2009: UPA Returns to Power

  2 June 2009, by Kamala Prasad

  The election to the 15th Lok Sabha has thrown up some surprises. Predictions have been proved unrealistic. It is time to put the outcomes in perspective.
  The leader of the winning coalition has called the outcome “historic”. Manmohan Singh, though not fighting for a seat, has declared it a “massive mandate”. The Congress party General Secretary and in charge of UP State has read in it signals for an end to the era of regional, identity parties. If these readings are valid, then, (…)

• Election Results: Some Reflections

  2 June 2009, by Amitava Mukherjee

  As expected, the results of the Lok Sabha election have led to revolts against Prakash Karat and Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee within the CPM as well as the Left Front. Although the CPM leadership tried to put up a smart face, yet the chasm was too deep to paper over as an overwhelming majority of the West Bengal leadership laid the blame for electoral defeat squarely at the door of Prakash Karat. Somnath Chatterjee openly called for his ouster, a sentiment which is shared by many in the CPM’s (…)