Articles by Bishwanath Goldar

There has been criticism of the 2 percentage point hike in the 2013-14 real gross domestic product growth in the new National Accounts Statistics series and some observers have therefore been sceptical about the new series. There is, however, evidence that the growth rate in real gross value added of manufacturing in 2013-14 was probably about 5% or higher though it was reported as a negative 0.7% in the previous NAS series. Since manufacturing accounts for about 18% of GDP, more than half of the hike in the growth rate for 2013-14 between the two NAS series can therefore be explained in terms of a required correction in industrial growth rate estimates.

This article attempts to estimate how India's trade in agricultural products will be affected by tariff reductions according to the tiered formula of the 2008 draft modalities in the Doha round of the World Trade Organisation. The estimates indicate that the reductions in agricultural tariff rates will lead to an increase in India's imports of agricultural products by about 1% and an increase in its exports of agricultural products to the us and us markets by about 2% to 4%. India has probably more to gain from the implementation of tariff cuts according to the tiered formula than to lose from it. However, the overall effect of the tariff cuts on India's agricultural exports and domestic agricultural production would be small

Employment in India's organised manufacturing sector has increased in recent years at the very rapid rate of 7.5% per annum between 2003-04 and 2008- 09. The impression of jobless industrial growth prevailing for some time is therefore not valid any more. What could possibly account for this high rate of job creation in organised manufacturing since 2003?

This study was undertaken to gain an understanding of the baseline water supply and sewerage services in Delhi, and assess consumer coping strategies and associated costs, their preferences for service improvements, willingness to pay and affordability for the preferred options. For this purpose, a representative sample survey of around 8,000 households and about 2,000 non-domestic consumers was carried out. The survey results bring out the deficiencies in services, and the significant coping costs the consumers are bearing. The survey data reveals that the consumers are willing to pay - and can afford - the extra cost that service improvement will entail. The analysis of survey data indicates that, for poor households in informal settlements, substantial improvement in water supply can be made by introducing/implementing paid group connections. Significant social gains, which could be as high as Rs 5,500 to Rs 8,000 million per annum, are expected from the efficiency improvements in the present system and other reforms that could be undertaken by the Delhi Jal Board.

This paper analyses the influence of the investment climate on total factor productivity in the registered manufacturing sector across the major Indian states. We find that a market friendly investment climate is important for achieving higher levels of productivity. This conclusion is robust, unaffected by the choice of the investment climate indicator. A market friendly investment climate, however, does not mean that the regulatory function of the government should be done away with. Government regulation is crucial to address market failures and to protect social interests, but the policies and practices of the governments should be transparent and designed without distorting the incentives of the firms to invest and grow