On labour’s role

It is not just today’s governments and businesses who think that production or economic growth must precede any consideration along the lines of labour welfare. This thought has remained unchanged since independence. Here’s an excerpt from Nehru’s address at the Nagpur session of Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC). It was most likely delivered at … Continue reading On labour’s role →

Lockdown Diary: Last Entry

Bengaluru 25/04/2022 Covid- 19 and ending the Lockdown Diary When the Covid-19 lockdowns began in March 2020, I began writing notes everyday as a lockdown diary. I wrote continuously for a year and then intermittently thereafter. It went on for 572 days and as cities, travel and workplaces opened up after the second wave, writing … Continue reading Lockdown Diary: Last Entry →

Values: A policy problem

Down the road from our farm, a couple of farms were bought, the land use category was changed and there’s a ‘water theme park’ under construction. This small 5-6 KM long valley flanked by low rise hills has a reservoir occupying the lower trough. It was constructed as a minor irrigation project for the region’s … Continue reading Values: A policy problem →

The real conflict in gig work – Marx, Sen and Technology

I have been reading Sen's excellent memoir 'Home in the World' published recently. His reflections on Marx, Adam Smith and Srafa are a valuable reading to explore the long arc of key ideas in economics. One of those ideas is the idea of value. Taking a leap from there, the following is a reflection on … Continue reading The real conflict in gig work – Marx, Sen and Technology →

Race to the bottom for gig workers

A few weeks back, Mohan Mani and I wrote in The Hindu about a few aspects of work in the gig economy from our research at the Centre for Labour Studies. The article is here . Our study estimated that the net earnings for the worker was only around 40% of the total gross earnings … Continue reading Race to the bottom for gig workers →

Notes on farming – 2

Notes on farming and mechanization began with part 1 here. April, 2022 It has been a busy few months with lots to understand, process and write about. Contrary to the general impression, the pace and intensity of activities are faster on the farm than work in the city. Farm work can get quite intense, physically … Continue reading Notes on farming – 2 →

Russia and Ukraine

Few thoughts on the Russia - Ukraine war that is going on. Some of the most generous and affable people I have met in my travels were Ukrainians. A poetry collection of Wislawa Szymborska sits on my bookshelf as I think of Ukraine. A friend pulled it out from her shelf as I spoke of … Continue reading Russia and Ukraine →

Roundup 2021

Leh. December, 2021 It was a productive year on several counts. It was also a year when the pandemic became a fixture and most of life and work kept getting rearranged around it. I can’t recollect a single decision taken in 2021 that wasn’t adjusted for Covid-19. There were daily realizations of how uncertain and … Continue reading Roundup 2021 →

Day 572: Choices

Surathkal. September, 2021. 20/10/2021 Day 572 Choices and articulations It has been 571 days or eighteen months since the beginning of the pandemic. When it tipped a year mark, it felt as though the end was near. I often thought about how this would end. What would I observe in the last days of normalcy … Continue reading Day 572: Choices →

Day 515: Pandemic, schools and children

23/08/2021 Day 515 Pandemic, schools and children In Karnataka, high schools and pre-university colleges reopen today after eighteen months of remaining shut due to the pandemic. This prompted me to gather articles and reports on the impact of the pandemic on schools and school-going children in India. The setback in education at school-level is unprecedented. … Continue reading Day 515: Pandemic, schools and children →