The three new labour codes passed by Parliament without discussion make sweeping changes to labour laws; they reduce the regulatory powers of the government; they hand over some oversight functions…
India’s new labour codes that consolidated 29 central labour laws in 2019-2020 reveal a pro-employer ideology. These codes reverse hard-won protections and return conditions to colonial-era standards.
Labour rights in India have been based on the norms of the International Labour Organization but these have not led to any noticeable increase in standards. India’s labour regulatory regime can…
Employment and wage trends since the mid-1990s have seen 3 phases of growth. In the 3rd period, since 2017–18, the ‘quantity’ of employment has grown. This has been mainly of the self-employed with…
There is no connection between politics, elections and governance in Bihar. It is instead caste that defines both society and politics: caste parties and caste-based alliances seek to get the better…
The story of the Vikassheel Insaan Party or VIP, a party of the Nishad community in Bihar, is important for understanding the positives and negatives of the rise of small caste-based political…
The story of the Muslim vote in Bihar is not the triumph of the AIMIM, but the strong desire of the Muslim voter in both majority and minority areas across the state to express herself against the…
The air pollution crisis of the Indo-Gangetic plain runs deep. Quick fixes won’t work — it demands systemic change, bold reforms, and multi-pronged action.
Air pollution levels worsen each year, yet action is stymied by the government maintaining there is no correlation with deaths and diseases. As India embarks on a decadal review of its air quality…
The precarity of informal workers in India's coalfields point towards the need for discussions around 'just transition' to bring together climate justice and labour justice.
The free LPG connection scheme has seen a huge increase in the number of poor rural homes with gas stoves; more needs to be done to make LPG affordable and encourage the use of this clean fuel,…
For more than five years the Government has been lukewarm towards the MGNREGA. Yet, in the midst of the ongoing slowdown this very programme is a potentially effective instrument that it can and…
The union government’s desire to ensure uniformity of the Management Information System across the country in overseeing MGNREGA has resulted in workers losing income, employment, and access to…
There are internal constraints and structural barriers to women’s claim-making under MGNREGA. Supporting more egalitarian decision-making within the village, designing interventions that can help…
Governments of every political dispensation have sought to hollow out India’s rural employment guarantee scheme. Only a mass movement that keeps the vulnerable at its centre can make the MGNREGA what…
