Time and again Amartya Sen, one of the polymaths of our times, has stirred our thoughts and world-views through his writings and speeches. Intrigued by the questions of social justice and welfare, he argues, in this work, some of the fundamental issues-poverty, hunger, education, globalization, media and freedom of speech, injustice, inequality, exclusion, exploitation, etc. - we negotiate with in our day to day lives. With a passion and conviction masked by a gently persuasive style and characterised by an undogmatic engagement with differing points of view, Sen asserts that public policy should swing sharply towards the poor, the illiterate, and those suffering from ill health and malnourishment, and does so not just by appealing to justice and compassion but by relying on rigorous intellectual and academic analysis. Written in non-technical and easy to understand language, this volume would open a windowto the ideas of an internationally renowned Nobel laureate to a wide spectrum of readers.