This paper purports that the EKC for India is not an inverted “U” shaped curve based on the relationship between environmental degradation and per capita income. This is done with the help of key developmental variables (GDP, GDP per capita) and key environmental variables (CO2, CO2 per capita) using semi log equations for growth analysis and structural equations for EKC analysis for the time period 1990-2014. The findings of the paper reveal that there is strong evidence for the existence of an N-shaped EKC for India with the GDP term, its square and cube, all turning out to be significant with the expected signs.

Carrying forward the unprecedented paradigm shift of Universal Basic Income that was formally introduced in India by the Economic Survey of 2016-17, this paper endeavors to justify the need of a basic income supplement to improve upon the status quo as compared to the existing welfare schemes after drawing from the successful consequences of a myriad of pilot projects conducted across the globe and considering the challenges that the Indian social fabric is beset with. Along with bursting the bubble of myths that surround this conception, this paper attempts to reconfigure the basic principles of Universal Basic Income to make it feasible for India. Premising this policy proposal on some pre- requisites, the availability of fiscal space for establishing this progressive policy proposal has been examined to ensure its viability. Finally, being a step in the right direction, the recent egalitarian programmes by the Central and State governments to assure an income supplement to small and marginal farmers have been emphasized.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, both China and Vietnam have emerged as major economies in the international economic sphere. The economically most successful Asian countries have embarked on a path of development based on agricultural-led industrialisation. In the coming few years, many economies of Asia are expected to advance on to the next stage of development strategy and transformation. This paper aims to evaluate major debates about the various policies and strategies that were followed in the two countries and the economic benefits and costs of decentralization, experimentation, gradualism and how effective was state-led development in achieving economic goals in the two economies.

This article purports to trace the synergies that appear to exist between the theories of spiritual leadership (SL) and High-Performance Work Systems (HPWS) and present a HPWS-spiritual leadership- organizational performance link. After introducing the concepts of spiritual leadership and HPWS, their independent functioning mechanisms have been explained. A functioning mechanism is presented wherein spiritual leadership acts as a catalyst in the HPWS- organizational performance link. By identifying the underlying commonalities between the theories of spiritual leadership and HPWS, an effort has been made to conceptually justify the aforementioned functioning mechanism. Limitations of this paper and scope for further research have been discussed towards the end.

With the rising complexities in the business ecosystem and the upward globalization trend, reinforcing the global accounting profession and the advancement of cross-border economies through adherence to ethical standards is essential. This paper aims to analyze the perception of students’ on the importance of ethics in accounting education. A primary survey was conducted amongst 132 undergraduate students of Delhi University, India with a two-fold objective. Firstly, to determine the significance of ethics in the business community, business courses and decision making in the workplace. Secondly, to analyze respondents’ views on the value of goals of ethics education in accounting. The results indicate that women and older subjects identify ethics in accounting education to be more crucial than men and younger subjects respectively. The respondents also consider ethics teaching to be relevant to them in multiple spheres of life and their future careers.

The health of the banking system is a crucial component of the country’s economy. Banks are vital institutions, which contribute to the economic growth and economic development of a nation and allows it to achieve self-sufficiency in a world of changing possibilities. The essential role played by the banks makes it necessary for the authorities to ensure that they are not vulnerable to collapse, as the downfall of the banking system in a country can trigger a financial crisis. Given how the banking system plays a crucial role in capital infusion, a financial predicament in this age of globalization will have a cascading effect on the economies of several nations and have devastating effects on the long-term growth prospects of the world. This paper seeks to highlight the challenges posed by these mergers and acquisitions in the Indian banking sector and how it will shape the future of the Indian banking system. We have built our hypothesis by extensively studying the existing literature. We concluded that these challenges are very significant and need to be strategically addressed, with operational efficiency and financial performance at the core, to bear the fruits of mergers.

This paper analyses the common factors in the top five states of the Ease of Doing Business Rankings, 2017. Investment is one of the key drivers to the growth of Income (GDP) of any country or state. It is known that to attract investment, there should be a conducive environment for the incorporation of a business and their smooth functioning. Ease of Doing Business Index was used, by NITI Aayog, to evaluate the Indian states in this context. The rankings found the highest state with a score of 98.42, while the least score was as low as 0. What is it that the top scorers are doing differently? What sort of policies do the “achiever” states adopt so as to achieve this feat? Through our analytical study, we endeavor to present such common factors that led the 5 states to top the index.

India is a country known for its culture, values and the diversity that it possess since the world’s oldest civilisation till today. But over the years, with the industrialization, globalisation and technological advancement the handcrafted products of handicraft industry has undergone a lot of hardships and struggles which has ultimately led to the depletion of many crafts where preserving and supporting the culturally rich art forms is the only way left for the revival of the handicrafts industry.

This paper depicts the journey of handicrafts, right from its origin to the present state, when steps are being undertaken at every level to revive this industry by understanding the root problems and creating an impactful and sustaining solution to empower and support the traditional artisans to continue with their traditional family lineage that India is known for.

The paper studies the potential of green bonds in mobilising funds for financing the climate change and various benefits available for investors to invest in climate bonds market. An analysis of ongoing market trends and key sectors and agents involved in facilitating the flow of market is presented. The results highlight emerging economies still struggle and lack public support in green bonds market. There are many impediments which restrain the overall development of this market, including lack of aggregations mechanisms, relevant framework and risk profile. In order to overpower such barriers, some policy measures have been discussed from demand, supply and general side.

The paper discusses an innovative approach of agricultural mechanism- food production along with energy generation which benefits farmers economically and provides a new scope of development and revival in Indian Agriculture. According to the studies, it provides far reaching benefits to the agricultural sector when compared to the traditional and conventional methods of farming. The data and statistical figures reflect the scale of crop production being enhanced due to implementation of the agrophotovoltaics system through experiments conducted at grape farming lands in India as well as in the arid regions. The paper also mentions the cost benefit analysis as well as the critical approach of adopting the mechanism through various aspects of economy and environment. Moreover, the achievements in India towards the mechanism till now have also been discussed along with a focus on establishing the system all over the country with the available resources and technology. Apart from the food generation capacity, the mechanism also provides for a comprehensive use of solar energy, which is a renewable resource, in order to fulfill the increased demand of energy in the country.