T

he Planning Commission is neither a

constitutional nor a statutory body,
but over the years it has acquired tremen-
dous power of distant planning which is
unsuitable to a country as diverse and
complex as India. Let us neither reinvent
nor restructure such a body. Let us, in-
stead, make a clean break and replace it
with a think tank which supports high-
quality independent research to support
policymaking in India.
The fundamental reason for this is that
basic research is like defence: a pure pub-
lic good which the private sector can sup-
port only in limited ways. The
government, therefore, should provide
the necessary support for this. The reason
India needs such a think tank is that de-
spite enhanced federalismand overall lib-
eralisation, the government will remain a
dominant and critical player in the Indian
economy over the next several decades.
Though the most visible function of the
Planning Commission planning and en-
forcement of the Five Year Plans can be
shifted to the States and other Ministries,
policymaking will remain integral to the
functioning of the government at the Cen-
tre and State levels and must be supported
by a think tank. Such an entity must be
established with the central mission of
evolving into a centre of excellence for
policy research.
The Narendra Modi government has
the historic opportunity to nally devise a
method in the madness of Indian policy-
making by thoroughly professionalising
this space. Anindependent researchthink
tank comprising experts canprovide care-
ful analysis as well as give intellectual heft
to innovative policy solutions. Such a
think tank can also serve as an entity
which fosters a new culture of critical
thinking, openness, and debate.
Support for research
Research is seldommonetised unless it
is within private corporations where it is
meant for furthering business interests.
Research to support policymaking, on the
other hand, is of the nature of a public
good. It is of immense value to society, but
how do youput a price ona researchpaper
on poverty? Being a
public good, such re-
search has to be support-
ed through external
means. Internationally,
the most common form of
nancial support for re-
search is philanthropy and
government funding.
Historically, India has
had a rich culture of philan-
thropy. Unfortunately, how-
ever, it has largely remained
limited to religious activities and in-
stitutions, where donors rush for spiri-
tual dividends. Philanthropic support for
research in India is abysmal. This is in
stark contrast to the U.S. where private
philanthropy has long supported scholar-
ly research and where most of the top
research universities were started with
private endowment and foresight. Despite
massive early private support (or perhaps
because of it), the government in the U.S.
became a huge supporter of research with
growth in the importance of the National
Science Foundation, the National Insti-
tutes of Health and the National Endow-
ment for the Humanities. There is also
substantial research support that comes
fromfederal, state, and local governments
in the U.S. We have to create such a cul-
ture of public support for independent
research in India, so that policymaking, at
all levels, is based on scientic evidence
and not institutional memory and
anecdotes.
A natural source of support for inde-
pendent research in India can be found in
the Companies Act, 2013, whichmandates
qualifying companies to contribute at
least 2 per cent of their average net prots
fromthe preceding three years to Corpo-
rate Social Responsibility (CSR). With
such mandatory phi-
lanthropy, approxi-
mately 8,000 companies
operating in India will be
required to spend an esti-
mated Rs.150 billion an-
nually on CSR activities.
Given the public nature of
independent research, this
should fall prominently in
the realm of CSR activities.
But whether the nancial
support for this think tank
comes directly from the govern-
ment or from philanthropy, its govern-
ance structure should be designed to
maintain the highest standards of cred-
ibility and independence such that nan-
cial supporters have no control over the
research. The governance structure of
such a think tank is critical to its inde-
pendence and success. The government
needs to come forward and make consis-
tent, systematic and long-term invest-
ment in such an institution. But while the
nancial support would be public in na-
ture, it must be anautonomous entity that
lies strictly outside government control.
Globally, there is widespread evidence
that establishes the strong effect that gov-
ernance structure has on research output.
Autonomy and competition are positively
correlated with research output in uni-
versities and institutions. There is little
sense, and possibly some danger, in giving
greater autonomy to a publicly funded
think tank if it is not in an environment
disciplined by competition and evaluated
by outcomes. And there is little sense in
promoting competition if the institution
doesnt have autonomy to respond with a
more productive or efficient perform-
ance. It is therefore a combination of au-
tonomy and competition which will
deliver high-quality performance from
such a research institution.
While the government would naturally
exercise some inuence in determining
priorities for the think tank, the outcomes
should be open to scrutiny and evaluated
only through peer review by experts. This
would be the most efficient form of self-
regulation for the institution because it
would ensure a culture of accountability
which is merit-based, and which would
ultimately lead to sustained superior per-
formance. Independence of this institu-
tion will free scholars from a sense of
gratitude and trepidationwhichcommon-
ly marks public funding, and incentivise
them to produce and disseminate high-
quality research.
Skilled experts, not bureaucrats
Few would disagree with the observa-
tion that most think tanks in Delhi have
the dubious distinction of becoming a
parking lot for political cronies and re-
tired bureaucrats. If the Planning Com-
mission is to be replaced by a serious
research think tank, then it must have
skilled experts, not unskilled political ap-
pointees or unaccountable bureaucrats.
Domain expertise and competence rather
than political loyalty and bureaucratic se-
niority should be the eligibility criteria for
recruitment. The search process should
be transparent and open to all experts
global and domestic. Creating articial
barriers to entry will restrict the talent
pool and withhold the institution from
realising its full potential. Givenhow diffi-
cult it is to attract high-quality experts,
their appointment must also be done
strictly independent of the Ministries and
the bureaucracy. High-quality scholars
will drive the agenda of high-quality re-
search such that this institution becomes
a producer and repository of knowledge
and serves as the go-to place for all gov-
ernment ministries. Given the diversity of
performance and experiences of different
State government, this think tank canalso
serve as a crucial platform for knowledge
sharing between different States.
However, given the stranglehold of the
bureaucracy over the functioning of our
country, this will be the most rigid knot to
untangle for Mr. Modi. His slogan of
Minimum Government, Maximum Gov-
ernance is a call for efficiency. Let this
new think tank be created as a direct re-
sponse to the exigencies of the changing
Indian economy. The opportunity cost of
sticking to inefficient policies and non-
performing schemes is too high for a poor
but aspiring country like ours.
(Shamika Ravi is Fellow, Global
Economy and Development, Brookings
Institution, India Center.)
For new ideas, a clean break with the past
Instead of reinventing or restructuring the Planning Commission, we need to
replace it with a think tank that supports high-quality independent research
Shamika Ravi
The governance structure
of such an institution
should be able to maintain
the highest standards of
credibility and
independence
ILLUSTRATION:
DEEPAK
HARICHANDAN
CM
YK
ND-ND
11 THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2014
NOIDA/DELHI
COMMENT
>> The third paragraph of a report, AAP the biggest loser in Punjab bypolls
(August 26, 2014) said: Both the Assembly seats fall in the Patiala Lok Sabha
segment and Dharamvir Gandhi of the AAP is the sitting MP. Actually
Talwandi Sabo falls in the Bhatinda Lok Sabha constituency and Patiala
(urban) in the Patiala Lok Sabha constituency. It was an editing error.
>> Ina Kabaddi report (Sport, August 24, 2014), Bulls will look to press home
advantage, it was mentioned that Bulls have 23 points from 10 matches. It
should have been 31 points from10 matches.
>> The photocaption, What A Feeling which accompanied the report Pa-
kistan squares series (Sport, August 21, 2014) erroneously said that Pakistan
Captain Kaleem Ullah scored from a penalty. It was actually a free-kick, as
mentioned in the report.
CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS
G
overnments should have tougher
rules for electronic cigarettes,
banning their use indoors and putting
them off limits for minors until more
evidence can be gathered about their
risks, the U.N. health agency said on
Tuesday.
In a bid to set public policy, the
World Health Organization said the
popular nicotine-vapour products,
particularly the fruit, candy and alco-
hol-drinkavours, could serve as gate-
way addictions for children and
adolescents.
It recommended governments for-
bid or keep to a minimum any ad-
vertising, promotion or sponsorship
in a market that has mushroomed to
$3 billion last year and now includes
466 different brands.
In a report, the Geneva-based agen-
cy found that the boomin e-cigarettes
presents a public health dilemma.
Regulation is a necessary precon-
dition for establishing a scientic ba-
sis on which to judge the effects of
their use, and for ensuring that ade-
quate research is conducted and the
public health is protected and people
made aware of the potential risks and
benets, the report said.
The report, requested in2012 by the
179-nation WHO treaty for controll-
ing tobacco, is to be discussed at a
conference in Moscow in October. If
the recommendations are adopted,
the next step would be for nations to
strengthen their laws and policies to
meet the treaty obligations.
Little is known about the health ef-
fects of e-cigarettes, which have been
sold in the U.S. since 2007, and con-
tain less toxic substances than tradi-
tional cigarettes do. AP
U.N. health agency urges
crackdown on e-cigarettes
It is the policy of The Hindu to correct signicant errors as soon as possible.
Please specify the edition (place of publication), date and page.
The Readers Editors office can be contacted by
Telephone: +91-44-28418297/28576300 (11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to
Friday); E-mail: readerseditor@thehindu.co.in
The Terms of Reference for the Readers Editor are on www.thehindu.com
T
he shooting of 18-year-old Mi-
chael Brown, an African-Amer-
ican, by the Ferguson (Missouri)
Police in the U.S. on the after-
noon of August 9, led to major civilian
unrest in the city and its neighbourhood.
During the week-long violence, bottles
and Molotov cocktails were hurled by
mobs. Brown, who received at least six
gunshot wounds froma police rearm, was
walking down the street with Dorian
Johnson, a friend, when the two were ac-
costed by a white policeman. They were
possibly admonished for walking on the
centre of the road instead of on the pave-
ment. Facts thereafter are fuzzy with rival
claims of aggression and an exchange of
words. Mr. Johnson, a key witness in the
investigation, is categorical that the po-
liceman red several shots at his unarmed
friend without any provocation.
A suggestion initially that Brown was a
suspect in a liquor shop theft, and was
therefore confronted by the policeman,
was imsy because the video shot of the
inside of the shop released by the police
did not clearly establish that the person in
the clip was in fact Brown. There was also
no evidence to prove that the policeman
who shot himhad knowledge that the man
whom he stopped was actually a crime
suspect. Even if he had, the revelation that
as many as six shots were red at Brown
enraged the community, which did not al-
so take kindly to the fact that his body lay
on the street unattended by the police for
several hours.
Strangely, there was an initial depart-
mental reluctance for a number of days to
reveal the identity of the policeman who
was involved. When public indignation re-
ached its crescendo, the Ferguson Police
gave inand announced his name as Darren
Wilson. The latter has since beensuspend-
ed. A grand jury investigation (a kind of a
preliminary enquiry) has beenordered. Its
conclusions will not be in until October.
Only thereafter is any possible criminal
action against the policeman likely. The
Ferguson Polices refusal to arrest Mr.
Wilson has been roundly criticised as one
of blatant partisanship.
Fergusonis a city of some 20,000people
and is situated north of St. Louis. It was
predominantly white till a few decades ago
but it has a majority African-American
populationnow. Strangely, the city council
which has a majority white membership
and a white mayor does not reect this
demographic break-up. Also, only three of
the 50 Ferguson Police Department offi-
cials are African-Americans. The intensity
of public protest for several days reveals
that emotions are running highagainst law
enforcement personnel in the area. A
probe by the Federal Bureau of Investiga-
tion (civil rights) was initiated into the
alleged police misconduct, and the Attor-
ney-General, Eric Holder, visited Fergu-
son to oversee the official response and
assuage the wounded feelings of the Afri-
can-American community. (Mr. Holder, a
black, recalled how he himself had, in his
early years, been humiliated by the police
on a few occasions.)
Past episodes
The Ferguson happenings are some-
what reminiscent of the public uproar that
followed the Rodney King episode of
March 1991 and the Trayvon Martin death
in Sanford (Florida) in February 2012.
King was brutally assaulted in Los Angeles
County when his vehicle was intercepted
after a long and daring vehicle chase by the
Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). A
video clipping of the incident that was
broadcast widely led to national outrage
and tension in many cities. The acquittal
of all four accused police officers in 1992
led to large-scale riots in which more than
50were killed. The Martinkilling was even
more outrageous: he was, on mere suspi-
cion, challenged and later red upon and
killed by a part-time policeman, who nor-
mally goes by the appellation, Neighbour-
hood Watch Officer.
In all the three unfortunate episodes,
the victimwas a black youth and the police
officers, except in the Florida incident,
were white.
Incidents of this kind bring to the fore
the widespread belief in the country that
the police is prone to shoot fromthe hip at
the slightest hint that a personintercepted
in a public place could be a fugitive or
could be one who is preparing to commit a
crime. The popular view among minorities
is that it is only they who are at the receiv-
ing end of police excesses.
The debate on police discriminatory
practices goes back decades. In the early
1990s, I was a graduate student incriminal
justice at Temple University in Philadel-
phia a city with a large African-Amer-
ican population and a black police chief at
that time. The Philadelphia Police Depart-
ments reputation then was not great in
many aspects of law enforcement, and
there was an overwhelming feeling that
the force was guilty not only of corrup-
tion but of discriminatory practices too.
The unfortunate fact is that the U.S. Police
is white-dominated, and the few sincere
efforts to push up black representation
have yielded only modest success. At pre-
sent, blacks comprise only about 11 per
cent of the police in the country; whites
account for 75 per cent. The rest are either
Hispanic or Asian/Pacic Islander.
The relatively low black representation
in the police is attributed to twin facts:
one, there is no substantial dilution in
standards of recruitment to encourage
more successful black applications and,
more importantly, an average black youth
feels that once he gets into a police force,
he is likely to be harassed by a white super-
visor.
Police relations with the community at
large are also strained in many cities. The
rise in gun violence across the nation is
directly responsible for the hiatus. The
police have had to balance the demand for
tougher policing from the more affluent
sections, and the clamour fromthe minor-
ities for a more humane enforcement of
the law and less discrimination on the
ground of race. This is why the recent
militarisation of the police has been
counterproductive and actually infuriated
the minorities. The latters anger is justi-
ed somewhat by the fact that there were
as many as 400 killings in police shootings
in the past year.
Lessons for the police
The Ferguson incident highlights the
intricacies of policing inthe present times,
especially in a democracy that has a frac-
tured society. It has lessons for the Indian
police as well. Mindless policing divorced
from the realities of social inequality can
be dangerous. It can tear apart the basic
fabric of unity and civilised conduct of
citizens in any community. A blending of
toughness with the civilised treatment of
individuals is the recipe. But then this is
just theory, one more easily advocated and
expounded than actually possible to prac-
tise in a stressful situation that a police-
men is often placed in the present day
environment.
A misbehaving policeman on the street,
who cannot prove any provocation for his
erratic conduct, does not at all deserve any
sympathy. He is, of course, different froma
colleague who uses force only to ward off
an aggressor. Even here, the policemen
employing force for self-preservationor to
protect a member of the public, will have
to be viewed with less kindness if it is
proved that he had reacted disproportion-
ately, especially when he had the time to
apply his mind and disable an aggressor
through lesser force. In sum, an assess-
ment of police conduct onany occasionis a
matter for judicious scrutiny, whenever
required, and it cannot be one dictated by
political expediency or other non-profes-
sional considerations.
(R.K. Raghavan is a former director of
the Central Bureau of Investigation.)
Black city, white police, and Brown
SINGLED OUT? The popular view among minorities is that it is only
they who are at the receiving end of police excesses. Picture is of
a service for Michael Brown in St. Louis. PHOTO: AFP
The shooting in Ferguson and its violent aftermath shows that policing divorced from
the realities of social inequality can be dangerous
R.K. Raghavan
The U.S. police have had to
balance the demands from
the more affluent sections
for tougher policing, and
the minorities for a more
humane enforcement of
the law
G
ov. Rick Perry of Texas is running for President again. What are his
chances? Will he once again become a punch line? I have absolutely
no idea. This isnt a horse-race column.
What Id like to do, instead, is take advantage of Mr. Perrys ambitions
to talk about one of my favourite subjects: interregional differences in
economic and population growth.
You see, while Mr. Perrys hard-line stances and religiosity may be
selling points for the Republican Partys base, his national appeal, if any,
will have to rest on claims that he knows how to create prosperity. And
its true that Texas has had faster job growth than the rest of the country.
So have other Sunbelt states with conservative governments. The
question, however, is why.
The answer fromthe right is, of course, that its all about avoiding
regulations that interfere with business and keeping taxes on rich people
low, thereby encouraging job creators to do
their thing. But it turns out that there are big
problems with this story, quite aside fromthe
habit economists pushing this line have of
getting their facts wrong.
The tale of three cities
To see the problems, lets tell a tale of three
cities.
One of these cities is the place those of us who
live in its orbit tend to call simply the city.
And, these days, its a place thats doing pretty
well on a number of fronts. But despite the
inow of immigrants and hipsters, enough
people are still moving out of greater New York
a metropolitan area that, according to the
Census, extends into Pennsylvania on one side
and Connecticut on the other that its overall
population rose less than 5 per cent between
2000 and 2012. Over the same period, greater
Atlantas population grew almost 27 per cent,
and greater Houstons grew almost 30 per cent.
Americas centre of gravity is shifting south and
west. But why?
Is it, as people like Mr. Perry assert, because
pro-business, pro-wealthy policies like those he
favours mean opportunity for everyone? If that
were the case, wed expect all those job
opportunities to cause rising wages in the
Sunbelt, wages that attract ambitious people
away frommoribund blue states.
It turns out, however, that wages in the places
within the United States attracting the most
migrants are typically lower than in the places
those migrants come from, suggesting that the
places Americans are leaving actually have higher productivity and more
job opportunities than the places theyre going. The average job in greater
Houston pays 12 per cent less than the average job in greater New York;
the average job in greater Atlanta pays 22 per cent less.
So why are people moving to these relatively low-wage areas? Because
living there is cheaper, basically because of housing. According to the
Bureau of Economic Analysis, rents (including the equivalent rent
involved in buying a house) in metropolitan New York are about 60 per
cent higher than in Houston, 70 per cent higher than in Atlanta.
In other words, what the facts really suggest is that Americans are
being pushed out of the Northeast (and, more recently, California) by
high housing costs rather than pulled out by superior economic
performance in the Sunbelt.
But why are housing prices in New York or California so high?
Population density and geography are part of the answer. For example,
Los Angeles, which pioneered the kind of sprawl now epitomised by
Atlanta, has run out of roomand become a surprisingly dense metropolis.
However, as Harvards Edward Glaeser and others have emphasised, high
housing prices in slow-growing states also owe a lot to policies that
sharply limit construction. Limits on building height in the cities, zoning
that blocks denser development in the suburbs and other policies
constrict housing on both coasts; meanwhile, looser regulation in the
South has kept the supply of housing elastic and the cost of living low.
So conservative complaints about excess regulation and intrusive
government arent entirely wrong, but the secret of Sunbelt growth isnt
being nice to corporations and the 1 per cent; its not getting in the way of
middle- and working-class housing supply.
And this, in turn, means that the growth of the Sunbelt isnt the kind of
success story conservatives would have us believe. Yes, Americans are
moving to places like Texas, but, in a fundamental sense, theyre moving
the wrong way, leaving local economies where their productivity is high
for destinations where its lower. And the way to make the country richer
is to encourage themto move back, by making housing in dense, high-
wage metropolitan areas more affordable.
So Rick Perry doesnt know the secrets of job creation, or even of
regional growth. It would be great to see the real key affordable housing
become a national issue. But I dont think Democrats are willing to
nominate Mayor Bill de Blasio for President just yet. New York
Times News Service
Wrong way nation
WORLD VIEW
Americans are
moving to places
like Texas, but, in
a fundamental
sense, theyre
moving the wrong
way, leaving local
economies where
their productivity
is high for
destinations
where its lower
PAUL KRUGMAN