Indian companies outsourcing to find good help

WSJ profile last week of how, despite millions of graduates every year, India's colleges and universities fail to provide enough qualified workers to meet the growing domestic demand.  One call center provider in Bangalore has actually started shifting operations to the Phillippines and Nicaragua. 

Where does the Indian educational system come up short?  The article raises a number of possibilities, including low pay for teachers, too much bureaucracy, an emphasis on rote learning as opposed to critical thinking, and rampant cheating.  The problem extends to the elementary and secondary schools where over half of the 5th grade students read at the 2nd grade level. 

How should India provide for its poor?

Front page NYT story today on the debate going on in India about how to best distribute food aid to the poor.  Currently families are rationed so much food and oil each month, but rampant corruption and distribution issues prevent many families from receiving their ration.  The article claims that "70 percent of a roughly $12 billion budget is wasted, stolen or absorbed by bureaucratic and transportation costs."  As a result malnutrition remains a serious problem. 

One alternative being considered is replacing the rations with either food coupons (that could be used to buy food directly from the private sector) or cash.  Basic economics would support this approach as it would allow consumers to choose the items they want and would have lower operating costs.  However, one would expect opposition from the vested interests that benefit from the current system.