Q.1 Describe modern Indian society.

Ans. At once a stable society, comfortably couched in time-worn traditions, and a chaotic
crucible of new ideas, modern India is distinguished by diversity and united by patriotism.
There are countless issues that divide the country, including socioeconomic factors such as
caste and access to basic needs and education; regional variations like the dozens of official
languages and various different cuisines; religious differences that divide communities and often
create distinct neighborhoods; and the deep gender inequality that transcends even the division
between urban and rural populations. And yet there are many factors uniting the country. Even in
terms of language, English and Hindi are common to most of urbanized India, at least at a basic
level. And although major urban areas have been joined by roads (no matter the quality of these
roads), the democratizing power of the Indian rail system is not to be underestimated. A shared
history of colonialism, active media, a sprawling government bureaucracy, and an engaged
political body help create a cohesive Indian society. And, of course, there is the fact that Indian
people are, by and large, incredibly warm and welcoming.
Astrology
Modern India may be known for technology, but this doesn't negate the prevalence of
superstitious tradition, and many Indians won't make decisions about business, love, or family
without consulting the heavens or the cards. Marriages, if not made in heaven, should at least be
consecrated on an auspicious dateon days deemed extra-auspicious for weddings, huge
numbers of concurrent ceremonies occur.
Urban versus Rural Society
Possibly the biggest difference in India is one that tourists rarely experience: the division
between rural and urban life. India's cities are fueled by labor and resources from India's
villagesthe majority of the country's population still subsists on an agrarian lifestyle and
economyyet city and small-town life is worlds apart from the fields and dirt roads of the rest of
India. While in the cities, access to electricity is frustrated by unannounced cuts and load-
shedding, only about half of rural Indian households have any access to power at all. Education
and potable water are also often elusive commodities outside of India's cities and towns. Idyllic
glimpses of rural life are visible from the road or trainyellow-blossomed mustard fields in north
India, coconut plantations along the coast, tractors loaded impossibly high with bales of cotton or
other goodsbut the realities of rural life are something a traveler will rarely get the chance to
see. Interestingly, socioeconomic divisions of caste or occupationthough certainly still
presentare less stark in rural areas than in urban ones.
Rich, Middle Class, Poor
India's cities are microcosms and melting pots. A small, privileged elite drives (or is chauffeured)
between the air-conditioned high-rises of south Mumbai, the gated colonies of south Delhi, the
exclusive resorts of Goa, and similar areas. The denizens of this privileged group frequent five-
star restaurants, luxury boutiques, and private clubs. But this is just a tiny segment of society.
A large and rapidly growing middle class fuels urban economy, powering the country's
information-technology hubs. More professionalized and better educated than their parents,
members of the urban middle class also feed a mushrooming consumer-goods-and-services
sector. Spending money is proof of success, and lavish weddings replete with yards of brocade,
miles of fairy lights, tons of gold jewelry, and bushels of fresh-cut flowers are not uncommon.
Coffee shops and fast-food outlets cater to and are staffed by members of middle-class society.
In stark contrast to the rich and the middle-class, India's populated areas are also home to
millions of urban poorfrom migrants who set up house in tarpaulin shelters while employed in
construction and infrastructure projects to low-income families living in slum colonies
characterized by open sewers. Many urban migrants live a double lifecatering to the wealthy
and middle class so they can send money to their families back in the village. Besides domestic
help, low-income jobs include a wide range of workersincluding porters, cycle-rickshaw drivers,
salesmen of cheap goods, and more.
Gender Roles
Across all walks of life, women and men lead very different, often divergent, lives. While women
work the fields and provide manual labor on construction sites right alongside men, these are
roles born out of economic necessity. Middle-class and even elite women have less occasion to
work outside of the home; although wealthier families may educate daughters as much as sons,
the focus for women is squarely on marriage and raising children. Cutting across economic
distinctions is a preference for boysin some states female infanticide is still a serious problem,
and it is illegal for doctors to disclose the sex of fetuses. Some villages have such a shortage of
marriageable women that they have had to bring in brides from other regions of Indiaa practice
that rubs against the older tradition of marrying within one's caste and culture.
Marriage
Arranged marriages take place all across Indian society. Although the government prohibits child
marriage, betrothals and weddings at a very young age still do take place in more remote areas.
These days, however, the culture of dating also thrives in India's big cities. Couples can be seen
everywhere in Delhi and Mumbai, flaunting their sexual freedom on the dance floors of clubs,
sharing coffee and moony looks across a caf table, or surreptitiously canoodling under a tree in
a public parkoften the most convenient meeting ground for poorer youngsters from more
conservative families. Online dating is less of a casual affair than in the west, and dating sites are
used predominately by middle-class families looking to set up marriages.
Caste
Marriage classifieds (listings of eligible men and women, living in India or abroad, searchable by
caste, religion, profession, and education, etc.) are only one of the many societal phenomena in
which caste figures prominently. Caste in India can be as innocuous as a shared community
history, signified by a particular last name, or as insidious as a derogatory slur. Although
technically abolished, in practical terms caste identity still plays an important role in modern
Indian society, particularly in politics. There is raging debateakin to but far more polarizing than
the American debate over affirmative actionover quotas for historically disadvantaged castes in
government jobs or school admissions, for example, that plays out on the political stage both
nationally and locally.
Politics
India's parliamentary democracy is rife with corruption and strange liaisons, and the average
Indian is either actively cynical or openly engaged with politicsand sometimes both. A
multiparty system means that there are significant blocs of special-interest parties besides the
dominant Congress Party and BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party). Unfortunately, some of these
parties mine religion to garner support, which can have the result of turning whole communities
against each other.
Religion
Religion plays a large part in modern Indian society, and worship is an important component:
people often pray regularly in temples, mosques, gurdwaras, and churches, but may also have
family shrines at home, composed of icons, portraits, and statues. Ritual fasting is a regular
occurrence in many religions, whether weekly for some very pious Hindus or yearly during
Ramadan for devout Muslims. Religious conventions can often bleed into cultural ones,
influencing diet, neighborhood, occupation, and clothing choice.
Clothing
Clothing in modern Indian society is a signifier of many thingsgender, region, wealth, and
professionin addition to occasionally indicating religion. In general, men usually wear trousers
or jeans with shirts or T-shirts. In south India and in rural areas, native forms of dresslong
pieces of cloth calledlungis or dhotisare wrapped around the waist and legs, but loose-fitting
pajama-type outfits are more common. These are topped with an undershirt, called a banyan,
and perhaps a tunic or kurta. Headgear can also be an indicator of religion or region. Rajasthani
men are known for their bright, coiled turbans (and grandiose mustaches), Sikh men sweep their
long hair into streamlined turbans, and Muslim men usually wear skull caps when praying. Poorer
or rural women of all religions tend to cover their heads with thin scarves, and urban Muslim
women may keep their heads covered and wear body-covering robes as well. Traditional wear
for women includes the more typically north Indian tunic or shirt, called a kurta or kameez. This is
paired with loose pants, or salwar, gathered at the ankle. Skirts (lehengas) with blouses (cholis)
are also popular, particularly as wedding wear. Saris, yards of cloth that can be tied many
different ways around a petticoat and blouse, are worn all over India and come in many
regionally and seasonally specific textiles and patterns. Urban women are quite comfortable in
jeans and other Western wear, though exposing too much leg or cleavage in public is frowned
Q.2
Explain the process of passing Ordinary Bills in the
Parliament before it is formed into laws.
Ans. There are three stages through which a bill has to pass in one house of the Parliament. The
procedure is similar for the State Assemblies.
First reading - introduction stage[edit]
Any member, or member-in-charge of the bill seeks the leave of the house to introduce a bill. If
the bill is an important one, the minister may make a brief speech, stating its main features. After
the bill has been introduced, the first reading is deemed to be over. Therefore, in the first stage,
only the principles and provisions of the bills are discussed.
Second reading - discussion stage[edit]
This stage concerns the consideration of the bill and its provisions and is further divided into
three stages.
First stage
On a date fixed for taking up consideration of the bill, there takes place a general
discussion when only the principles are taken up for discussion. At this stage, three
options are open to the house. The bill may be straightaway be taken into consideration
or it may be referred to any of the Standing Committees or it may be circulated for the
purpose of eliciting general opinion thereon
Second stage, that is, discussion on the report
The next stage consists of a clause-by-clause consideration of the bill as reported by the
committee. When all the clauses have been put to vote and disposed of, the second
reading of the bill is over.
Third stage
Changes or amendments to the bill can be made only in this stage. Amendments
become a part of a bill if they are accepted by a majority of the members present and
voting.
Third reading - voting stage[edit]
The next stage is the third reading. The debate on the third reading of a bill is of a
restricted character. It is confined only to arguments either in support of the bill or for
its rejection as a whole, without referring to its details. After the bill is passed, it is
sent to the other house. If the number of votes in favour and against the bill are
same, then the Presiding officer (Speaker of the Lok Sabha or the Chairman of the
Rajya Sabha or anyone who is acting on their behalf) of the house get a chance to
cast his/her vote which is referred to as a Casting Vote Right. If the number of votes
against the bill is greater, the house/government will dissolve.
Bill in the other house[edit]
After a bill, other than a money bill, is transmitted to the other house, it goes through
all the stages in that house as that in the first house. But if the bill passed by one
house is amended by the other house, it goes back to the originating house. If the
originating house does not agree with the amendments, it shall be that the two
houses have disagreed.the other house can keep a money bill for 14 days and
ordinary bill for three months . if it fails to return the bill within the fixed time then the
bill is deemed to be passed by both the houses and then the bill is sent for
president's approval.
Joint-session of both houses[edit]
Main article: Joint session
In case of a deadlock between the two houses or in a case where more than six
months lapse in the other house, the President may summon, though is not bound
to, a joint session of the two houses which is presided over by the Speaker of the
Lok Sabha and the deadlock is resolved by simple majority. Until now, only three
bills: the Dowry Prohibition Act (1961), the Banking Service Commission Repeal
Bill (1978) and the Prevention of Terrorist Activities Act (2002) have been passed at
joint sessions.
[1]

President's approval[edit]
When a bill has been passed, it is sent to the President for his approval. The
President can assent or withhold his assent to a bill or he can return a bill, other than
a money billwhich is recommended by president himself to the houses, with his
recommendations. If the President gives his assent, the bill is published in The
Gazette of India
[2]
and becomes an Act from the date of his assent. If he withholds
his assent, the bill is dropped, which is known as pocket veto. The pocket veto is not
written in the constitution and has only been exercised once by President Zail Singh:
in 1986, over the postal act where the government wanted to open postal letters
without warrant. If the president returns it for reconsideration, the Parliament must
do so, but if it is passed again and returned to him, he must give his assent to it. In
the case of a Constitutional Amendment Bill, the President is bound to give his
assent. In case of the State Governments, the consent of the State's Governor has
to be obtained.
[

Q.3
Write a short note on Indias role with the various
principal organs and specialized agencies in the United
Nations.
Ans.3 ndia was a founding member of the United Nations, joining in October 1945, two years
before acquiring independence from the British Raj.
[9]
By 1946, India had started raising
concerns regarding colonialism, apartheid and racial discrimination. From early 1947-1948, India
took an active part in Drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Dr (Mrs). Hansa
Mehta, a Gandhian political activist and social worker who led the Indian delegation, had made
important contributions in drafting of the Declaration, especially highlighting the need for
reflecting gender equality by changing the language of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights from 'all men are created equal' (Eleanor Roosevelt's preferred phrase) to 'all human
beings'.
[10][11]

In 1953, the chief delegate of India at the time, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit was elected the first
woman President of the UN General Assembly. India supported the struggle towards global
disarmament and the ending of the arms race, and towards the creation of a more equitable
international economic order. India had a mediatory role in resolving the stalemate over prisoners
of war in Korea contributing to the signing of the armistice ending the Korean War in
1953.
[12]
India chaired the five-member Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission while the Indian
Custodian Force supervised the process of interviews and repatriation that followed. India then
went on to chair the three international commissions for supervision and control for Vietnam,
Cambodia, and Laos established by the 1954 Geneva Accords on Indochina. India also had an
active role to play in the Suez Crisis in 1956 with the role of Nehru, both as Indian Prime minister
and a leader of the Non Aligned Movement being significant. Indian historian Inder Malhotra
wrote that "Now Nehruwho had tried to be even-handed between the two sidesdenounced
Eden and co-sponsors of the aggression vigorously. He had a powerful, if relatively silent, ally in
the US president Dwight Eisenhower who went to the extent of using America's clout in the IMF
to make Eden and Mollet behave".
[13]

Charter provisions on Non-Self-Governing Territories were given a new thrust when the UN
adopted the landmark 1960 Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries
and Peoples which was co-sponsored by India. The following year, the Special Committee on the
Implementation of the Declaration on Decolonization was established to study, investigate and
recommend action to bring an end to colonialism, it was chaired by India for the first time. India
played a leading role in the formation of a Sub-Committee against Apartheid set up by
the General Assembly. When the Convention on Elimination of all forms of Racial
Discrimination was adopted in 1965, India was among the earliest signatories, however it does
not recognize competence under article 14 and it does not consider itself bound by article 22.
India also played a prominent role in articulating the economic concerns of developing countries
in such UN-sponsored conferences as the triennial UN Conference on Trade and Development
and the 1992 Conference on the Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro.
[14]
It has been
an active member of the Group of 77, and later the core group of the G-15 nations. Other issues,
such as environmentally sustainable development and the promotion and protection of human
rights, have also been an important focus of India's foreign policy in international forums.
UN Security Council[edit]


Countries which host an Indian diplomatic mission.
Activities during 1947-1962[edit]
Despite its anti-status quo stand on many global issues, India's attitude toward the basic
structure of the U.N was fundamentally conservative.
[15]
It accepted the organization and
distribution of power in the U.N, as both a guarantee of Indian sovereignty and as a check on the
numerical superiority of the U.S and its western coalition. India supported the charter provisions
for a Security Council veto for the great powers, opposed the U.S initiative to circumvent the veto
through the Uniting for Peace Resolution, dismissed Hammarskjld's notion of a "U.N presence"
as interventionist and opposed all efforts to conduct U.N directed plebiscites as tests of
opinion.
[16]

India's procedural conservatism was based both on its commitment to national sovereignty and
its desire to protect Indian interests. Its experience with the U.N had not always been positive. In
the early years after independence, a whole range of issues, which had their origins in the
partition of the Indian subcontinent between India and Pakistan, came before the U.N. These
issues included the disputed princely states of Junagadh, Hyderabad and Kashmir, which were
ultimately incorporated into the Indian Union through the use of military force.
[17][18]

The most persistent of these disputes was the Kashmir conflict. Nehru's faith in the UN and
adherence to its principles proved costly on some occasions due to the power play inherent in
the organization. This was seen by his decision to refer Pakistan's intervention ('invasion') in
disputed Kashmir to the UN Security Council in January 1948.
[19]
The United Kingdom, which
was hoping to avoid being seen as unfriendly to a Muslim state after the creation of Israel, used
pressure tactics on its allies France, Canada and the US to support the Pakistani viewpoint that
Kashmir's accession to India was disputable and had to be put to the test of
a plebiscite.
[20]
Nehru's hope that the UN would unconditionally instruct Pakistan to vacate the
one-third portion of Kashmir that the Pakistani tribesmen and army had occupied fell flat in the
face of geopolitical maneuverings and cross-issue linkage. To this day, Indian strategic
commentators and critics of Nehru bemoan his cardinal mistake of taking the Kashmir dispute to
a UN that was packed with pro-Pakistani partisan powers.
[21]
According to columnist Brahma
Chellaney, 'Nehru did not appreciate that the UN was an institution of power politics, not an
impartial police force'.
[22]
As if a double reminder were needed that India was small fry in a UN
dominated by crafty Great Powers divided into two ideological camps, New Delhi was
disappointed to find that Security Council members the US, United Kingdom and France tried to
prevent it from forcibly absorbing the Portuguese colony of Goa in 1961.
[23]
But for the Soviet
Union veto in favor of India, Goa could have become enmeshed in another Kashmir-like
stalemate for decades, buffeted by the changing winds of Great Power alignments and
preferences that were paralyzing and hijacking the UN.
[19][24]

Washington Post reported that "India was offered a permanent seat on the council 55 years ago,
in 1955. But that offer, made by the United States and the Soviet Union, was declined by India's
first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. Nehru said the seat should be given to China
instead.".
[25]
The required council seat was then held by Taiwan (ROC). This report, however, is
factually incorrect as Prime Minister Nehru categorically denied receiving any such offer, formal
or informal, as stated by his reply to a short notice question in the Lok Sabha on 27 September
1955 stating that "There has been no offer, formal or informal, of this kind. Some vague
references have appeared in the press about it which have no foundation in fact. The
composition of the Security Council is prescribed by the UN Charter, according to which
certain specified nations have permanent seats. No change or addition can be made to
this without an amendment of the Charter. There is, therefore, no question of a seat being
offered and India declining it. Our declared policy is to support the admission of all
nations qualified for UN membership".
[26]
Even if India were to accept such offers assuming
they were made, it would have required the United Nations charter to be amended to include
India in place of Republic of China (Taiwan) in the Security Council or to expand the Council. It is
not known whether the Taiwanese government representing China's seat at the time in the
Security Council would have vetoed the amendment or accepted the amendment under US
pressure as Taiwan was solely dependent on the US for its protection from mainland China.
Overall the period from 1947-1962 was marked by India's active interest in all UN activities under
the leadership of Krishna Menon who was the Indian Ambassador to the United Nations from
1952-1962. Indian leadership and peacekeeping roles in the UN brought it considerable
recognition and global standing.
[27][28]

The Low Profile Phase from 1962-1976[edit]
India's defeat in the Indo-China War of 1962 came as a grave shock in comparison to its global
aspirations and recognition. Large scale hostilities and military reverses dealt a shattering blow to
its self-confidence and pride. India was obliged to turn towards the west for military and political
support. Following the conflict with China, India became involved in two wars with Pakistan and
entered a period of political instability, economic stagnation, food shortages and near-
famine conditions. India's role diminished in the UN which came both as a result of its image and
a deliberate decision by the post-Nehru political leadership to adopt a low profile at the UN and
speak only on vital Indian interests.
[29]
This change in policy was implemented during the 1965
debate on Kashmir in the Security Council when Indian Foreign Minister Swaran
Singh dramatically stormed out of the session in response to the intemperate language
of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Pakistan's Foreign Minister.
[30]
In his book "India's Changing Role in the
United Nations" Stanley Kochanek shows how 'bilateralism became the guiding principle of
Indian foreign policy', relegating the UN to just an 'arena for maintaining such
contacts'.
[31]
Further the Soviet Union's backing became far more important than a slow and
indecisive UN Security Council when India obtained its greatest strategic victory by breaking up
Pakistan into two and carving out independent Bangladesh in the year 1971.
In 1974 India tested its first nuclear device, the aftermath of which resulted in a nuclear embargo
by US and Canada. Soon after the UN's non-proliferation agenda became another irritant that
forced New Delhi to view some units of the organization with distaste as fronts for imposing
discriminatory regimes instead of promoting universal disarmament.
[19]
From the very beginning it
has refused to lend its support to the Nuclear non-proliferation Treaty with India's then External
Affairs Minister and later President,Pranab Mukherjee in a visit to Tokyo in 2007 commenting
that: "If India did not sign the NPT, it is not because of its lack of commitment for non-
proliferation, but because we consider NPT as a flawed treaty and it did not recognize the need
for universal, non-discriminatory verification and treatment."
[32]
In short, the 1960s as a whole
saw major changes in the global system but a general decline in UN activities.
Seeking of Permanent Seat in UNSC[edit]
India has been elected seven times to the UN Security Council. Only three countries have served
longer than that (Japan, Brazil, and Argentina), except for the Permanent Five, and Colombia
has served the same amount of time.
India has been seeking a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council as a member of
the G4, an organisation composed of Brazil, Germany, Japan, and India, all who are currently
seeking permanent representation. According to their proposal the UN Security Council should
be expanded beyond the current fifteen members to include twenty-five members. If this actually
happens, it would be the first time permanent Security Council status is extended to a South
Asian nation and supporters of the G4 plan suggest that this will lead to greater representation of
developing nations rather than the current major powers.
India makes a number of claims to justify its demand. India has the world's second largest
population and is the world's largest liberal democracy. It is also the world's tenth largest
economy and third largest in terms of purchasing power parity as of 2012.
[33]
Currently, India
maintains the world's third largest armed force.
[34]
India is the third largest contributor of troops
to United Nations peacekeeping missions with 7,860 personnel deployed with ten UN
Peacekeeping Missions as of 2014 after Bangladesh and Pakistan,
[35][36]
all three nations being
in South Asia. India has contributed nearly 160,000 troops, the largest number from any country,
participated in more than 43 missions and 156 Indian peacekeepers have made the supreme
sacrifice while serving in UN missions. India has also provided and continues to provide eminent
Force Commanders for UN Missions.
[35]

Although the U.S. and other permanent Council members were not very supportive of expanding
the Security Council, in his visit to India President Obama has offered his support for India to
become a permanent member of the Council. However the reaction from other Council members
are not very clear, particularly from China. Thus it is uncertain whether the demands by G4
nations will be implemented anytime soon.
Q.4
Explain the benefits of
subsidies.
Ans.4 Subsidies involves the government paying part of the cost to the firm. This reduces
the price of the good and should encourage more consumption. A subsidy shifts the
supply curve to the right.
What is Justification for Subsidising goods with positive externalities?
In a free market, people ignore the positive externalities of consumption, e.g. when
cycling to work, you dont consider the reduction in pollution your decision creates. In a
free market, there is under consumption of good with positive externalities because
people usually ignore the external benefits their decisions make.
Examples of goods with positive externalities in societies
Health care free universal health care can ensure everyone gets vaccinated; this
prevents the spread of infectious disease, which benefits everyone. In other words, you
have a personal benefit from other people being healthy.
Collecting refuse and litter If litter is picked up it benefits everyone else who can
enjoy a more beautiful environment. It also helps improve public health.
Education. If the long-term structurally unemployed workers gain useful training and
education, it enables them to find work. This has benefits for other people in society -
The government receives more tax revenue and pays less unemployment benefit.
There is also a less tangible benefit of a more cohesive society.
Diagram showing market failure when there is a positive externality

The free market equilibrium is at Q1. because S=D. People maximise their welfare
where private marginal benefit = private marginal cost.
But, social efficiency occurs at Q2 (where SMB = SMC), therefore, at the free market
equilibrium, the social marginal benefit is greater than the social marginal cost. Society
would benefit from increasing output until Q2.
To increase consumption and production, the government can offer a subsidy to reduce
the price and increase quantity.
Q.5
Give a detailed account of an episode when the CAG
has demonstrated activism
Ans.5
After judicial activism, it can well be said India is now going
through CAG activism. General public is welcoming it but
the ruling UPA and the private sector is fuming. The
countrys government audit machinery which has entered
the private sector domain now, has assumed the position of
the Election Commission during the 1990s when T N
Seshan headed and electrified it. It is another matter that
the Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai
shuns publicity unlike the wily former CEC.

Rais CAG has been in the limelight ever since he highlighted the Rs1.76 lakh crore notional loss in
the 2G spectrum scam and continues to occupy headlines for having exposed corruption in
Commonwealth Games and Adarsh housing society in Mumbai, not to speak of oil ministry favouring
Reliance Industries when it allowed one of the worlds top private sector companies to raise cost of
developing the nation's largest gas fields by 117 per cent.

Union ministers M Veerappa Moily and Kapil Sibal have criticised the CAG. Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh surprised observers when he lashed out at the auditor. But experts beg to differ. Said P V
Indiresan, former director, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras while talking to Deccan Herald: It is
good that it has woken up. The CAG is the accuser. It does not have the authority to prosecute - only
the government has that authority. What a pity that we have no independent
Q.6
Discuss in detail employment status in
India.
Ans.6 A significant change in inequality in income and wealth is possible only in a
longer term perspective. Employment structure of an economy is the normal instrument
that can cause a change in inequality either way, i.e. an increase or a decrease in the
inequality. Other economic instruments such as target group policies and programmes
have a short term impact, but the redistribution through employment is sustainable.
Since
the governments function within the administrative and fiscal constraints, the target
group
programmes normally have a marginal impact on income redistribution. Income of labour
enables flow of resources across income classes of people and across the social and
ethnic groups. Flows of income across locations are influenced both by assets available
and by other modes of creating employment opportunities. However, income generated
by employment of migrant labour, facilitates flow of resources across regions for a given
regional distribution of capital assets. Employment and equity of income across classes
of
people and across regions are, therefore, closely related to each other in the long term.

Current Employment and Unemployment Situation

As noted earlier any vision of the future has to be rooted in the current reality and
policies and processes have to be identified to bridge the gap between the current reality
and the future vision. It is , therefore, essential to have an understanding of the broad
employment picture as it exists today, which would also indicate the directions for
improvement in future. Some aspects of the current employment scenario are listed
below

7.32 % of the labour force, in the year 1999-2000, was unemployed. In
absolute terms the number of unemployed stood at 26.58 million.

Since the above estimates are on Current Daily Status basis, the number of
unemployed also includes the number of those who are underemployed in
terms of underutilization of the labour time. But it excludes such
underemployed who are working at very low levels of income and
productivity.

Among the employed, the proportion of poor is as high as in the
population at large, suggesting a large proportion of workers engaged in
subsistence employment.

Only about 8 % of the total employment is in organized sector. More than
90 % are engaged in informal sector activities, which is, largely outside
the reach of any social security benefits and also suffers from many 2
handicaps in form of limited access to institutional facilities and other
support facilities.

The educational and skill profile of the existing workforce is very poor.