Mainstream Weekly

Beyond Enumeration: Reframing the Meghalaya Socio-Economic Review 2025 through Doughnut Economics | Jos Chathukulam & A M Jose

A. M. Jose, Jos Chathukulam — 2026-06-24T23:56:47Z

[(Abstract
The Meghalaya Socio-Economic Review 2025 seeks to present a comprehensive statistical overview of the state's developmental trajectory. However, this paper argues that the document fails to meet the analytical and normative expectations of a socio-economic review. Drawing on the framework of Doughnut Economics, the study critiques the Review's descriptive bias, conceptual limitations, and institutional omissions. It highlights the absence of engagement with Autonomous District (…)

- 2026

Kerala's Governance Challenge: Ministerial Inexperience, Bureaucratic Dependence and the Need for Knowledge-Based Democracy | A. M. Jose and Jos Chathukulam

A. M. Jose, Jos Chathukulam — 2026-06-12T13:52:31Z

Abstract: This article examines a growing contradiction in Kerala's democratic governance: elected ministers possess political legitimacy, but many assume complex portfolios without adequate sectoral experience or independent institutional support. Using the recent ministerial portfolio allocation as an illustrative case, the article argues that the issue is not individual incompetence but a structural knowledge deficit within parliamentary governance. In the absence of strong transition (…)

- 2026

When Agriculture Becomes an Unwanted Portfolio: Kerala's Agrarian Crisis and the Search for an Ecological Future | Jos Chathukulam & A. M. Jose

A. M. Jose, Jos Chathukulam — 2026-06-01T03:23:40Z

[(Abstract: The reluctance surrounding the Agriculture portfolio in Kerala's new government is not a routine episode of coalition politics. It is a revealing political symbol of a deeper transformation in Kerala's society and development model. Agriculture, once central to land relations, social reform, rural livelihoods and political mobilisation, has increasingly lost prestige in the public imagination. The crisis is no longer only about prices, productivity or farm income; it is also (…)

- 2026

The e-SHRAM Paradox: Visible to the State, Invisible in Welfare | Bhumi Sharma, Faraz Ahmad and A. M. Jose

A. M. Jose — 2026-05-22T04:32:38Z

Abstract: India's e-SHRAM portal is one of the world's largest digital registries of unorganised workers. With over 31.48 crore workers registered as of January 2026, it represents an important administrative achievement. Yet registration alone does not guarantee social protection. Drawing on field evidence from informal workers in Gurugram, this article argues that e-SHRAM has made workers visible to the state without necessarily enabling them to claim welfare benefits. The challenge, (…)

- 2026

Beyond Schumpeter: Institutional Foundations, Creative Destruction, and India

A. M. Jose — 2025-11-08T16:25:39Z

Abstract
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, awarded to Joel Mokyr, Philippe Aghion, and Peter Howitt, highlights the institutional, cultural, and competitive foundations of innovation-driven economic growth. By extending Joseph Schumpeter

- 2025

Reimagining Cooperativism: A Critical Review of India

A. M. Jose, Jos Chathukulam — 2025-08-09T12:03:25Z

Abstract: The National Cooperative Policy 2025 marks a bold attempt to reposition cooperatives as central actors in India

- 2025

New Cooperative Ministry in India: An Analysis of the Implied Strategy of Development for the Consideration of Policy Makers | A. M. Jose & Jos Chathukulam

A. M. Jose, Jos Chathukulam — 2022-07-15T21:31:31Z

by A. M. Jose & Jos Chathukulam *
Abstract
A controversy has erupted in India over the formation of a new Ministry of Co-operation by the Union government. There has been widespread criticism that the Union government is weakening the ‘cooperative federalism' by encroaching into an area of state government's prerogative. This article looks into the merit of this controversy by examining the role of Cooperatives in an economy and what role the governments should play in making the (…)

- 2022