By IANS
New Delhi : The 2006 Nobel laureate for economics Edmund Phelps said instead of cash grants by the government, providing jobs would be a good strategy for inclusive growth.
Phelps was delivering the keynote address at the daylong Bharat Ram Memorial seminar on the “Development with Justice” Monday.
He noted that merely giving cash grants to the unemployed or the poor may not be the right way to achieve inclusive growth.
Phelps, who is the McVickar professor of political economy, Columbia University, said providing jobs not only provides satisfaction, but also a feeling of being a legitimate part of society.
In an afternoon session, eminent sociologist and economist Andre Beteille said it would not be right to conflate the issues of poverty and inequality with economic growth.
Beteille, who had resigned from the National Knowledge Commission after the government’s proposal to increase reservation, pointed out that while the extensive use of quotas have to some extent equalised economic benefits between communities, it has not been that successful in equalising distribution across households and individuals.