Opinion

Poverty in the developing world

10 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| Centennial News 86(4), Fall-Winter 2000/01

I have two concerns on which I am trying to carry out research and study during my stay at Yale, both of which do have an identifiable connection. The first relates to understanding the nature of rural poverty in developing countries and its nexus with natural resources and the environment. The second deals with policies and institutional frameworks that would promote innovation and rapid technological change to alleviate poverty.

Scrap the PPA with Dabhol?

06 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Economic Times

It is unfortunate that the Dabhol project is in such a terrible mess. This is clearly the result of serious lapses and mistakes on the part of all the stakeholders.

Regulating relationships

02 Jun 2001 |
Mr S Sundar
| The Times of India

Independent regulation involves the transfer of powers once exercised by governments to autonomous statutory agencies whose status in government is not clearly defined. This has naturally caused friction between ministries and regulatory authorities, and has resulted in a debate on the relationship between the government and the regulator.

Natural resources and their role in poverty alleviation

02 Jun 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| TERI Newswire VII(11)

The Planning Commission is in the process of formulating the Tenth Five-Year Plan, which, based on press reports, will target a much faster reduction of poverty in India. Several approaches can be conceptualized for the elimination of poverty, but perhaps the most effective and certainly the most sustainable approach would be the building of natural assets on which the lives of the poor depend overwhelmingly. Impoverishment of natural resources only accentuates the disparity between the rich and the poor.

The Power of None

30 May 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Times of India

The Dabhol drama took an unexpected twist recently after renegotiating committee chairman Madhav Godbole first stepped down and then resumed his responsibilities on the same day. TERI's Director-General R K Pachauri, a member of the Godbole Committee, added fuel to the fire by publicly stating that Mr Godbole should not participate in the negotiations with Enron. In an interview with Vikas Singh, Dr Pachauri explains his stance on the Enron controversy and the problems with India's power sector as a whole.

Trust the worm to clean up the house

19 May 2001 |
Dr Seema Bora
| The Pioneer

The astronomical growth in population, coupled with increased industrial and agricultural activities, have made waste disposal a global problem. Garbage burnt without separating non-degradable items like plastic, tin cans and glass bottles, is unhygienic and emits foul smoke.

Privatise yes, but the state must regulate

19 May 2001 |
Mr S Sundar
| The Times of India

The decade of 1990s saw the liberalization and privatization of infrastructure services in a big way. For many years, there was a strong belief that infrastructure services can only be provided by natural monopolies as they alone enjoyed economies of scale. And whether the monopolies were in the private sector as in the US or in the public sector as in Europe and India, the service providers had the opportunity to set prices without providing commensurate value for money.

Democracy & Environmental Policy

18 May 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Newspaper Today

A few weeks ago, President George W. Bush of the United States caused widespread dismay by his communication addressed to four different members of the Senate literally burying the Kyoto Protocol. The US President obviously did not anticipate the massive criticism and protest this action would provoke. The result of his abandonment of the Kyoto Protocol, questioning of the science of climate change and refusing to do anything about reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from US power plants have been rightly seen by many as a backward step. Not only have leaders in Europe openly criticised President Bush's stand, but a delegation from the European Union led by the Swedish Environment Minister flew to Washington, DC to meet important officials in the Administration in an effort to convince them of the unreasonableness of this change in posture on the part of President Bush.

Recapturing the spirit of Rio in Johannesburg

17 May 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| TERI Newswire VII(10)

In the preparations for the WSSD (World Summit on Sustainable Development) to be held in Johannesburg in September 2002, several global issues are coming to the fore as matters of concern. The Summit itself is being organized 10 years after the Rio conference on environment and development, which was a unique event where world leaders from across the globe gathered to discuss and debate the future of the planet and the development of human society. The Rio summit found agreement on various documents, which were hammered out and finalized, including the Framework Convention on Climate Change, Agenda 21, and the Rio Declaration.

Start operating buses on ULSD

16 May 2001 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| Auto Monitor Vol 1(10)

Dr R K Pachauri, Director-General of TERI, has maintained that the Supreme Court order on converting the entire bus fleet in Delh to compressed natural gas (CNG) was no a practical suggestion. He met Nitika Bhardwaj recently for an interview to elaborate his views.