Opinion
"Will they smoke the pipe(line) of peace?"
17 Jul 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Times of India
The Director-General of TERI R K Pachauri takes credit - along with former deputy Iranian foreign minister Ali Shams Ardekani - for coming up with the idea of a gas pipeline from Iran through Pakistan to India. That was a decade ago. Now, the issue is again in the pipeline and may well figure in the Agra Summit. Pachauri spoke to Sunit Arora and N Vidyasagar on what needs to be done to bring the pipeline project into action.
India's economic polices: need to start afresh
17 Jul 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| TERI Newswire VII(14)
Two intriguing concepts came to my notice in the context of discussions on the US economy. The first was part of a conversation held with a senior diplomat in Washington, DC who has served in India, and who was wanting to understand the state of the Indian economy. His main concern was related to India's ability - or the lack of it - to attract adequate inflows of capital from other countries as a means to accelerate economic development. His thesis was that the US had established a record of 'growing on other people's money', and that India had all the elements of governance and institutional capabilities to be able to do the same. His approach made sense, because other than countries of the former Soviet Union, every country that has prospered since the beginning of the industrial revolution has done so through the net inflow of capital. And what happened to the Soviet Union has brought out the failings of excessive self-reliance.
Status of coal-bed methane in India
17 Jul 2001 |
Mr S K Chand
| TERI Newswire 7(14)
The coal-bearing formations of India occur in two distinct geological horizons in the Lower Gondwana (Permian) belts of India and the Tertiary sediments (Eocene-Oliocene) of north-eastern India, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Jammu and Kashmir. Methane gas is entrapped within these formations at a wide range of sub-surface depths.
Has power regulation come of age?
13 Jul 2001 |
Ms Sudha Mahalingam
| The Financial Express
The messy and devastating Enron stalemate is not without its brighter side. It seems to have accelerated the evolution of power regulation in this country by exposing the regulators to pitfalls that they should watch for. Now we have the Andhra regulator sending back power purchase contracts for possible revision and asking some extremely uncomfortable but relevant questions?questions that hitherto went unasked merely because the electricity consumers on whom would devolve the entire burden of the contracts, lacked the constituency and a forum.
Accountability helps regulate the regulators
07 Jul 2001 |
Mr S Sundar
| The Times of India
In our last article, we had argued the case for empowering the regulator. An autonomous regulator must, however, be accountable for his actions. It is only regulatory accountability that would make independent regulation acceptable to all stakeholders, especially the government.
Indo-Pak relations: the way ahead
02 Jul 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| TERI Newswire VII(13)
The Indo-Pak Summit between Prime Minister Vajpayee and President Musharraf ended without a joint statement by the two leaders. Considerable disappointment has been expressed by several persons whose voices are heard in this country on what appears to have been a meeting without any positive outcome. These feelings are largely the result of excessive expectations. Given the serious problems that have divided the two countries, it was unrealistic to expect that any solutions would emerge from one single meeting. Much of the build-up prior to the summit had been created by a hyperactive media in this country and the intense competition for headlines, which, to a large extent, were created without any substance. The rationale for accommodation between India and Pakistan is clear, but rational considerations seldom dominate international relationships and policies in most parts of the world.
Regulatory reforms in the environment infrastructure sectors
01 Jul 2001 |
Dr Kaushik Deb
| Regulateri (9)
Growing population in India over the decades has constrained the availability of resources in both urban and rural areas, though the impact of lack of delivery of services has elt more in urban areas. In this changing liberalized scenario and because of increasing pressure on resources, there is a need for regulating the environment infrastructure. Environment infrastructure comprises basic services like water supply, sewerage, and solid waste management.
S&T as drivers of economic growth
29 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| Business Line
The official website of the Commonwealth Knowledge Network states that the stock of science and technology (S&T) manpower in India is 6.3 million. It estimates that scientists and engineers engaged in R&D in 1994 numbered 1,36,503 and expenditure on that year was US$ 2,172.4. This works out to 0.81% of that year's GNP. While in several respects this figure is not adequate for a country that plans to develop as a knowledge society and achieve high rates of growth based on scientific and technological achievements, it does indicate, nevertheless, a sizeable commitment of resources to S&T.
Reforesting India
29 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Newspaper Today
In the past six weeks I have had occasion to travel to the hills in the new state of Uttaranchal. The Kumaon and Garhwal hills have a unique personality, which is perhaps totally different from what is seen in other mountainous regions of the world and, in fact, even from the rest of the Himalayan range in this country. Earlier visits in thisregion generally led the visitor to believe that these hills were dying with green cover being depleted at a rapid rate and the resulting soil erosion creating dangers of landslides and ugly scars all around.
Regulators can't pack a punch without financial muscle
23 Jun 2001 |
Mr S Sundar
| The Times of India
A constructive relationship between government and the regulator is essential for the success of regulatory reform. Such a relationship can develop only when governments empower the regulators so that they can hold their own. It is, however, not easy to empower the regulators. Bureaucracies all over the world do not willingly give up the powers that they enjoy. Most countries have sought to provide for regulatory autonomy by setting up the regulators through specific legislation. In India too, where the bureaucracy is powerful, regulation has been established through legislation in order that the regulator's autonomy is not left to the magnanimity of the bureaucracy.