Economy

This article is supported by SVP Cities of India Fellowship Bengaluru has slowly become India’s top MBA destination, and along with it, the city has witnessed an exponential rise in the number of multinational companies and startups setting up shop here. This mutual dependence between the two - colleges and companies, sets a precedence for better partnership along the lines of skilling and employment opportunities. With this as the focus, this article looks at the issue of employability among management graduates, trailing the issue at every level. Schooling culture The issues surrounding employability in India start from the very beginning…

This article is supported by SVP Cities of India Fellowship Over the last five years, we have read or seen enough stories of engineering graduates driving Ola cabs or even rickshaws for a living. Unfortunately that fear has not abated. College students all across the country are biting their nails over the uncertainty of employment, post graduation. While some think the situation is terrible, others believe it could be worse. Arjun Sen, currently an undergraduate in Bengaluru claims, “With a sociology degree I thought I had it bad, but I am slowly feeling a lot more comfortable, now that everyone…

“From a needle to a computer, you will get everything here,” said a lungi-clad old man, who was selling rare copper coins (half anna from 19th century) at the Friday Pallavaram market. With a brief pause, he chuckled, “Except a girl to get married to.” Fresh vegetables, various varieties of fish, antique coins, old newspapers, eggs, chicken, batteries, computer spare parts... the list goes on. True to the trader’s words, the weekly Sandhai (market) that takes place every  Friday on the Old Trunk Road of Pallavaram brings a village to the city. With just an umbrella or a wet cloth…

The theme for this year’s World Environment Day, celebrated on June 5, was “Beat Plastic Pollution”. Beyond lip service, it is most heartening to witness the deeds of people who walk the talk and show that where there is a will there is a way to ramp up our fight against plastic pollution. Citizen Matters spoke to one such Chennai citizen, V C Kannan, who, along with his family, has demonstrated that it is indeed possible to go plastic-free, especially at a large event such as a wedding. Yes, a zero-plastic wedding! The Big Idea For a family that has…

"Shop till you drop" is no more the smartest or even the kindest idea these days, with the Planet reeling under the mountainous weight of landfills and trash. But shopping is essential, at least for essentials like food and medicines! But when you shop, do you ever check the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) on the food, clothing, medicines or other things that you buy? There could be some real good consumer law violation out there, as a few consumers found out! Gerald Castelino of Mysore had gone to a liquor shop called True Spirits 2 in Kuvempunagar, Mysore where he…

As a small group of volunteers walked though the snaking pathway that led through Urur Kuppam to the stretch of Elliot’s beach near the Broken Bridge, we spotted litter through the trek. There were styrofoam cups, packing material, plastic covers, PET bottles and pieces of glass strewn along the path. We were headed towards the shoreline by the bridge to collect waste for the Waste and Brand Audit, a pan-India initiative that was led by the Kuppai Matters platform in Chennai last Saturday. When we made our way past the bridge to the designated spot, Olaf, a German exchange student…

The Public Distribution System in Tamil Nadu (TNPDS), perceived as a boon to citizens from low income groups has many issues. Its nodal agency, the Civil Supplies department, has failed at various levels of operations -- issuing smart cards, easing  online procedures for correcting card information and distribution of the commodities. On one hand,  promises by the state government to complete issue of smart cards by March 1st this year have not been met and on the other, technical issues in the PDS centres are inconveniencing card holders. A reality check conducted by Citizen Matters in various PDS and E…

Human rights activists and eminent members of civil society have come together to raise deep concerns and unequivocally condemn the recent police action against protesters in Thoothukudi (Tuticorin), who had been demanding the closure of a plant owned by Sterlite Industries, a subsidiary of mining giant Vedanta Resources.  Police violence has left several people dead and many more injured. In a public statement, citizens point out that not only was this tragedy totally avoidable, it appears that the police have even given hot pursuit and shot at women and others in fishing hamlets like Theresepuram. The sheer brutality of the…

The beauty business is like a slinky sorceress who ruthlessly exploits every weak spot in our armour, to make us spend recklessly. This business grabs us with all those advertisements telling us what we should want or need – it could be the lips of Angelina Jolie or the chesty charm of Salman Khan! A whiter than white face or a pencil slim figure! Luckily the Consumer Protection Act helps people when cheated by the sellers of instant beauty. Dr. Batra's Hair Care became a nightmare for a young prematurely balding Chandigarh boy Harjot Singh, a minor (aged below 18) who…

Health shopping today is one of the sure-shot ways of losing not only cash, but also our mind, because quacks have invaded the markets in hordes! They are as huge, unscrupulous and harmful as the creepiest creatures and ghouls crawling out of a Stephen King chiller or a Lord of the Rings movie! Several recent advertisements put out by some of the biggest and the smallest drug companies in India for selling their potions, lotions, clinics, tablets and treatment for all sorts of ailments have been banned by the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), because they violated the Drugs…