The goal in this paper is to correct growing regional imbalances within India. One way of doing that was to integrate some of the more remote border areas with neighboring areas in other countries. Darjeeling borders Illam and Jhapa, the centres of tea production in Nepal. In Rangpur division of Bangladesh, Panchagarh district produces tea which neighbors Uttar Dinajpur, one of the poorest districts in North Bengal. We study the five districts for possible competitiveness, clusters in the region and its state of infrastructure (transport, energy and water). We examine whether there is any potential to develop value chains across the region. If one uses standard economic theory there is little chance of regional integration between the districts because the regions are producing the same “homogenous” product. The question we asked in the beginning was whether value chains can be developed. The answer is yes and no. Value chains in the standard South East Asian manner cannot be developed because of the nature of the product and just-in-time production cannot take place with the current border constraints. Trade in intermediate inputs and services can help the poorer districts of South Asia to uplift themselves.
The main objective of the study is to assess the level of computersitaion of district and Taluka courts in India covered under the e-Courts project. This includes assessment of the ICT deployment of hardware & LAN components, utilisation of hardware & LAN components, assessment of Case Information System (CIS) application roll out and readiness for service delivery, etc. An online survey and face to face interview will be conducted among four major groups of stake holders; judicial officers, court officials, lawyers and litigants. The study will cover 300 courts spread over 5 high courts in India.
This study is targeted at bringing the focus of high-level policy attention on the urgent need to revamp India’s FDI statistical system for an accurate view of Foreign Direct Investment inflows a / outflows and their impact.
The study will achieve the following objectives:
Strengthening FDI data frameworks in adherence to international conventions.
Streamlining structural and regulatory procedures to foster public private partnerships, opening market access and strengthening business networks and models for improved efficacy and efficiency.
Regulatory environments and institutional structures that promote innovation leading to new opportunities for business.
Building and amplifying the economic evidence base to demonstrate the benefits to India in supporting open trade.
The National Survey of Household Income and Expenditure (NSHIE), also titled “Living in India Survey”, is aimed at capturing the socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of Indian households, with a particular focus on income expenditure, savings and debt, and other aspects of household life in India. These include amenities and dwelling details, water usage, health, remote payment and detailed consumer behaviour data, with a section on the consumer mind space. The survey was conducted in two phases, starting with a listing survey. Over 514,000 households were canvassed during listing which was completed in July 2011. The main survey was completed in September 2012. A meeting of the NSHIE Technical Advisory Committee was held in March 2012 where the results of the listing survey were shared and approved.
Pending legislation, which will guarantee access by the poor to a specified quantity of food grains, the National Food Security Bill stands to have a major impact on the food grain stocking policy in India. The Bill mentions cash transfers and issuing food coupons to eligible families. However, no concrete steps have been spelled out on this front. It is therefore supposed that the present system of procurement and storage of food grains by the Central and State government agencies shall continue. The successful implementation of the Act will clearly require that much larger stocks be held. Whether these stocks are held by the government or the private sector depends on new instruments being created, e.g., negotiable warehouse receipts-, on new institutions such as public-private partnerships in warehousing and on changes to the legal structure, especially the Essential Commodities Act and the Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation) Act
