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Pranab Bardhan

Pranab Bardhan

12 commentaries

Pranab Bardhan, Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley, is the author, most recently, of A World of Insecurity: Democratic Disenchantment in Rich and Poor Countries (Harvard University Press, 2022).

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  1. The Popular Decimation of India’s Democracy
    bardhan12_ TAUSEEF MUSTAFAAFP via Getty Images_bjp TAUSEEF MUSTAFA/AFP via Getty Images

    The Popular Decimation of India’s Democracy

    May 3, 2024 Pranab Bardhan examines the shrewd tactics and false narratives that underpin broad support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

  2. Pranab Bardhan on India, China, universal basic income, and more
    GettyImages-1257780037

    Pranab Bardhan on India, China, universal basic income, and more

    Apr 11, 2023 Pranab Bardhan highlights the costs of India’s crony oligarchy, assess the sources of China’s economic resilience, makes the case for a UBI in low-income countries, and more.

  3. Unmasking India’s Crony Capitalist Oligarchy
    bardhan10_MONEY SHARMAAFP via Getty Images_adani MONEY SHARMA/AFP via Getty Images

    Unmasking India’s Crony Capitalist Oligarchy

    Feb 13, 2023 Pranab Bardhan explains how the allegations against billionaire Gautam Adani embody the flaws in India’s political economy.

  4. Organized Labor After COVID
    badhan9_Elijah NouvelageGetty Images_amazonunionprotest Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images

    Organized Labor After COVID

    May 3, 2021 Pranab Bardhan shows that while unions are adapting and making some gains, they still face major hurdles.

  5. Modi’s Performance and the Tragedy of India’s Poor
    bardhan8_Pallava BaglaCorbis via Getty Images_narendramodi Pallava Bagla/Corbis via Getty Images

    Modi’s Performance and the Tragedy of India’s Poor

    May 21, 2020 Pranab Bardhan argues that the government's pandemic response is following a script that is devastating the country's poor.

  1. cnobre2_CARL DE SOUZAAFP via Getty Images_amazonfire Carl de Souza/AFP via Getty Images

    The Amazon’s Future Will Be Decided in 2025

    Carlos Nobre & Marielos Peña-Claros warn that the world's largest rainforest is reaching a tipping point, beyond which it will largely disappear.
  2. zizek42_Andrej IsakovicGettyImages_serbia_student_protests Andrej Isakovic/Getty Images

    The New Face of Protest

    Slavoj Žižek

    The mass student protests that have swept Serbia since last November are distinctly “apolitical,” because their goal is to create the conditions for a new politics, rather than settle for another version of the same old game. Young Serbs understand that neither justice nor democracy is possible until the tables have been cleared.

    contrasts the pioneering mass student demonstrations in Serbia with widespread private resignation in China.
  3. lee54_Ed JonesGettyImages_korea_elderly_worker Ed Jones/Getty Images

    Reaping Asia’s Silver Demographic Dividend

    Lee Jong-Wha urges governments to develop integrated policies that encourage older adults to stay in the workforce.
  4. ekue1_Peter DazeleyGettyImages_green_jar_coins Peter Dazeley/Getty Images

    Getting Green Investment Where It’s Needed Most

    Serge Ekué & Javier Díaz Fajardo propose a strategy to redirect all financial flows toward the climate transition.
  5. kallot1_pixdeluxeGetty Images_africaAI pixdeluxe/Getty Images

    The Global South Needs to Own Its AI Revolution

    Kate Kallot explains how these countries can advance a community-driven approach to the emerging technology.
  6. adebajo13_Alexis HuguetGettyImages_goma_m23_conflict Alexis Huguet/Getty Images

    Africa’s Year of Warlords and Meddlers

    Adekeye Adebajo foresees growing instability and more foreign interference on the continent in 2025.
  7. basu109_Matt CardyGetty Images_socialmedia Matt Cardy/Getty Images

    Playing at Democracy

    Kaushik Basu explains how a well-known children's game illustrates the logic of today's emerging oligarchies.
  8. gros195_StockbyteGettyImages_deregulation_red_tape Stockbyte/Getty Images

    The Revolt Against Regulation

    Daniel Gros explains why the new push for deregulation in the United States and the European Union may not help either.
  9. sherwin14_Andrew HarnikGetty Images_trump Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

    Donald Trump’s Misrule of Law

    Richard K. Sherwin

    By insisting on its own supremacy, the executive branch of the US government under President Donald Trump is effectively seeking to alter America’s constitutional framework of checks and balances among co-equal branches of government. Trump has no authority to execute this change, but that will not be enough to stop him.

    observes that the president's claim of supremacy over the courts amounts to tossing out the US Constitution.

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