In recent times there has been series of discussions regarding the socio economic conditions of the Indian minorities and their development and it is a welcome shift
In recent times there has been series of discussions regarding the socio economic conditions of the Indian minorities and their development and it is a welcome shift
As the Government of India cancels the environmental clearances to the Vedanta project in the Niyamgiri hills, the role of corporate politics in the country is becoming the focus of the debate.
True to his credentials as an obsessively US-friendly Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh presided over his Cabinet on August 20 and approved the final draft of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill 2010, with substantial modifications and additions to allow the
[ Editor's note: This is the second article in an in-depth 3 part series (Part 1, Part 3) on the Bhopal Gas Leak Disaster by the noted activist N.D. Jayaprakash. The author is the Joint Secretary of the Delhi Science Forum and Co-Convenor of the Bhopal Gas Peedith Sangharsh Sahyog Samiti. ]
[ Editor's note: Pragoti is pleased to publish an in-depth 3 part series (Part 2, Part 3) on the Bhopal Gas Leak Disaster by the noted activist N.D. Jayaprakash. The author is the Joint Secretary of the Delhi Science Forum and Co-Convenor of the Bhopal Gas Peedith Sangharsh Sahyog Samiti, a survivor's organization. ]
Parimal Maya Sudhakar writes on developments in China since the Tiananmen Incident of 1989.
If the nuclear weapon state (NWS)-parties to the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty are at all serious about implementing Article – VI, at the 2010 NPT Review Conference they would have given binding unqualified negative security assurance to Non-NWS, consent to a no-first-use pledge between the NWS, agree to de-alert all deployed nuclear weapons, and take necessary steps to begin preparations for holding a nuclear weapons convention. Without these binding commitments, every other step would merely amount to an exercise in futility.
Arindam Banerjee writes on the phenomenon of Biofuels - generated from grains that could otherwise serve as food.
Pragoti salutes the nameless and the ordinary whose valiance and courage in life and death will not be headlines in the chronicles of the Mumbai carnage. The immediate appeals to jingoistic nationalism and communalism by the hard and soft Hindu right, and the proposals to launch war and pass draconian laws, dished out by the mainstream media, is an attempt to ensure that the people are put through more of such terror. We stand committed to the struggles of the ordinary and the nameless people of India to fight terrorism and all political harbingers of terror.
The general strike on August 20 will be a landmark in the struggle of the workers and peasants of India against the Manmohan Singh government that is bent on proving its loyalty to the big bourgeoisie in India and its allegiance to international finance capital and by extension US imperialism. A PRAGOTI Editorial
Anand Patwardhan's documentary film "War and Peace (Jung aur Aman)" was screened at IIT Bombay on 30th August 2009. During and after the discussion session of the documentary film, our editorial team member Anirban Ghatak took a short interview of Anand. Anand answered the questions with equal determination and conviction which we are pretty used to see in his films. Here we present the interview.
हाल के विधानसभा चुनावों और राजस्थान में वामपंथी आन्दोलन के अनुभवों के बारे में जनवादी महिला समिति की राजस्थान राज्य सचिव और सी.पी.आई.एम की राज्य समिति सदस्या दुर्गा स्वामी से प्रगति के संपादक मंडल सदस्य टिकेन्दर पंवार का विशेष साक्षात्कार।
But what the [financial] crisis [in the world's capital markets] does is to undermine the ideology of neo-liberalism which gives the Left a chance to intensify its struggle against neo-liberalism. And in so far as the recession that is arising will hurt not just the workers and peasants but even sections of the middle classes which have hitherto been beneficiaries of neo-liberalism, the soil for this struggle will be more fertile now. So, the short answer to this question is that the Indian policy-makers left to themselves will not change course, but we have to make them change course. Eminent economist Prabhat Patnaik replies exclusively to a set of interview questions from Pragoti's Editorial Team. Prabhat Patnaik is a leading Marxist economist, and is a professor at Centre for Economic Studies and Planning at Jawaharlal Nehru University. He is also the vice-chairman of the Planning Board in the state of Kerala.
In the recent period, alongwith a number of critical discussions on the electoral set-back suffered by the CPI (M) and the Left in last Lok Sabha elections, there have been some questions raised about the practice of democratic centralism as the organizational principle of the Communist Party. Such critiques have come from persons who are intellectuals associated with the Left or the CPI (M).
Prabir Purkayastha's article on the Left, 2009 Elections and beyond. Originally published in the Centre for Policy Analysis' journal.
The quest for human freedom requires a transcendence of capitalism. What is important, however, is the overall vision that we have of the socialism that will emerge, one which accords centrality to human freedom, which remains continuously “open” and untainted by ossification in any form, and which constitutes an unleashing of democracy and a perennial engagement of the people with politics.
The article, originally published in the Economic and Political Weekly is attached along with this post.
Public Private Partnership (PPP) is the new matra for infrastructure development in India. It is argued in official circles that this model is efficient and can solve the problem of infrastructure for the country. Amitayu Sen Gupta provides a theoretical critique of PPP.
Well before the global financial crisis finally broke in September 2008, most people in developing countries were already reeling under the effects of dramatic volatility in global food and fuel markets. From late 2006, prices of most primary commodities first increased very rapidly, then collapsed even more sharply from their peaks in May-June 2008. This was not due to real economic forces, but rather financial activity, specifically the involvement of investors in index funds,writes Jayati Ghosh.
Prof.Robert Pollin, Economics Professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst reviews Prof. Prabhat Patnaik's latest book, "Value of Money". The review is attached along with this post.
"Peepli Live can be accused of the same crime that it accuses the media of – just scratching the surface of all issues it could in an hour and a half without really trying to push the envelope of discourse on any front, neither the role of media, nor agrarian crisis or indeed the crisis of Indian politics itself", says Tejal Kanitkar in a review of the movie in this post.
Films like other performative cultural forms can speak the language of its own times, in which they have been created and situated. As a visual reflection of society in which it is contextualized, it can speak both covertly and overtly about the past and present world, and albeit can articulate politics and reflect upon philosophy as well. James Cameron’s Avatar, a mainstream Hollywood blockbuster is not an exception in this regard. Maidul Islam writes in his review of the film.
Students' Struggle, the organ of the Students' Federation of India has been carrying a section roughly titled, "The book that inspired me". Economist Venkatesh Athreya recently wrote in the section, how Das Kapital inspired him.
A poetic tribute to the revolutionary Marathi poet Narayan Surve by Pallavi Chavan. The poem, originally composed in Marathi, has also been translated in English by the poet. Both the versions are included in the post below.
Prakash Karat, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) writes on the legacy of Vladimir Lenin on the 140th birth anniversary.
The war which was started on fictitious evidence of Iraq possessing Weapon of Mass Destruction (WMD) destroyed the life of ordinary Iraqi. Even going by the official figures in last seven years of American occupation some 70,000 Iraqis are killed. The secular fabric of Iraqi society was purposely smashed which resulted into ethnic conflicts and presently it is the hurdle for peace and tranquillity.
A short note on the concept of Paradox of Thrift and its misunderstandin
A blogpost on the erroneous assumptions and conclusions about the Public Distribution System or how I continue to one-sidedly debate the Economic Times and its writers on inflation. Cartoon, courtesy The Hindu newspaper.
A blog post on an erroneous interpretation of inflation in India in the Economic Times newspaper.
An animated explanation of the global crisis of capitalism and its various explanatory formats. By David Harvey, eminent social theorist and Marxist.
Once in a while a film is made which does not try to sell you a dream but rather shows you the inner contradictions of the society that we live in. (This review contains spoilers)
"History is repeating itself in West Bengal, with Maoists, the Trinamool and the Congress doing what they had done in the late 60's and early 70's. And it will not be history repeating itself, first time as a tragedy, the second time as a farce. This time around, it will be a much bigger tragedy." Prabir Purkayastha writes in Newsclick.
The people of West Bengal should ensure the defeat of the aims of incumbent union railway minister for riding a violent tiger - that had mauled to death nearly 200 innocent civilians on a serene night near Sardiha two months ago.A blog post.
Live streaming of the Extended CC Meeting of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) being held in Vijayawada.
It is shocking to say that the UPA-2 government is vigorously pursuing its agenda of neo liberalism by keeping the people of the country unaware of the deals it is signing under the Free Trade Agreements with European Union and Israel. Though the successive WTO meetings have failed to reach a conclusion as far as trade barriers are concerned following a stiff resistance by the developing countries, still the Indian state has taken the bilateral method of clinching many such deals . Quite interestingly , the WTO with all its imperialist agendas still had transparency in the multilateral agreements being pursued. But here we have a situation where except the government no one knows the fallout of FTAs in the country. It is only with some materials being published in Europe and elsewhere that we come to know the seriousness of the situation. In this regard a round table conference was held in Delhi with four peasant organisations and some individuals in the organisation. The following resolution was passed.
South Asia suffers from several ailments in which peace between India and Pakistan has become a question, which is getting complicated with time. During the visit of Indian foreign minister to Islamabad an aura was created that now the two countries will resolve all the outstanding issues and we will live in tranquility.
It is surprising that the NAC-recommended press release does not reflect any spirit of the strong social-political action behind the mobilisations around the food security issue since last few years. More distressing is to hear such discussions when the country has been witnessing high inflation fuelled by higher levels of food inflation. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the fears of the proposed FSA turning into a sham and, in turn, only used as a rhetorical cover against the opposition has almost come true.
The entire country is reeling under terrible spell of inflation. Prices of essential commodities and food items have reached historically high levels. The Government has done too little to control prices. A blog post.
A blog post expressing frustration at the political developments in the Republic of Nepal, as its Realpolitik driven political class still struggles to formulate a Constitution despite the deadline of two years for the Constituent Assembly passing by.
Video Recording of Promode Dasgupta Memorial Lecture delivered by Prakash Karat, General Secretary, CPI (M).
Recent comments