Opinion

By Dr K Srinivasa Rao With the change in the operating ecosystem driven by technology and the evolution of the gig working community, the archaic labour laws need reforms. The possibility of process reforms, automation and enhanced scope to use tools like artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning and robotics calls for improved capacity of […]

By B Yerram Raju In India, 98% of manufacturing micro and small manufacturing enterprises (MSMEs), estimated at 1.6 crore, are single-owner enterprises even if they are proprietary or partnerships and family enterprises or private limited enterprises. Stages of their growth are similar to biological organisms like the seeds transforming into flowering or fruit-bearing trees. This […]

By Wendy Whitman Cobb Russia intends to withdraw from the International Space Station after 2024, according to an announcement from Yuri Borisov, the new head of the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, in a meeting with Vladimir Putin on July 26, 2022. Borisov also said future efforts will focus on a new a Russian space station. […]

By Dhananjay Tripathi The last couple of years has not been good for South Asia, which, in all respects, stands divided. Politically and economically, South Asia is regarded as one of the world’s least integrated regions. This post-colonial, post-partition region has failed to stand united despite establishing the South Asian Association For Regional Cooperation (SAARC) […]

By Arun Sinha India’s two prominent economists — Arvind Panagariya, former vice-chairman of NITI Aayog and Columbia University professor, and Poonam Gupta, director-general of the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) and a member of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) — have in a policy paper batted for privatisation of all public […]

By JR Janumpalli The national executive meeting of the Bharatiya Janata Party held in Hyderabad was at its belligerent best, which involved a total assault on Telangana. But, the party could not garner enough traction commensurate with its effort and desire. For, the BJP is not in power in the State and the local party […]

By T Muralidharan The following four key provisions under the GST regime spell disaster for the MSME sector: • Taxpayer must pay the entire GST dues before filing the GST Summary Return (GSTR 3B) • GSTR 3B cannot be filed until and unless the delayed payment interest at 18% is also paid • Taxpayer is […]

By Dr Manoranjan Sharma The imposition of the windfall taxes and export duty evoked considerable debates across the development spectrum. The basic justification for the windfall taxes and export duty tax on petrol, diesel and Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) hikes imposed on July 1, 2022, stems from the fact that some oil refiners were raking […]

By Amit Mishra Startups in online education saw a spike as a result of the ‘stay-at-home’ Covid policy. Now, as India gets back to the ground, a large number of ed-tech employees are going home. A stock market meltdown earlier this month did not bode well for the wider economic world, and as a result, […]

By Kevin Trenberth When politicians talk about reaching “net zero” emissions, they’re often counting on trees or technology that can pull carbon dioxide out of the air. What they don’t mention is just how much these proposals or geoengineering would cost to allow the world to continue burning fossil fuels. There are many proposals for […]

By Salla Vijaya Kumar Three important Acts, the States Reorganisation Act, the River Boards Act and the Inter-State River Water Disputes (ISRWD) Act were enacted in 1956 to resolve inter-State issues. The States Reorganisation Act has reformed the boundaries of Indian States and territories, mainly on a linguistic basis. The Telangana region of erstwhile Hyderabad […]

By Mark Davison When World Trade Organization (WTO) members agreed in June to ease patent rules on Covid-19 vaccines, they stopped short of waiving patent protection. As the vaccines flowed into some parts of the world in late 2020, bringing relief, hope and a ticket out of lockdown, other countries’ vaccination rates lagged far behind. […]

By Dr Moitrayee Das, Saanya Verdia The need for a culturally competent practice of psychology has become an important issue today. Continuous globalisation has led to an increase in the intercultural interactions between different communities. These interactions have led to the exchanging of cultural knowledge, ideas and forms of healing. Different forms of healing are […]

By Nayakara Veeresha The political fallout of the Maharashtra Vikas Agadhi (MVA) regime in Maharashtra has reignited the debate on defections and their role in democracy. Political defections and the subsequent government’s downfall in Maharashtra are nothing but a betrayal of the people’s mandate and democracy. It seems political parties are least bothered about respecting […]

By Kristie Patricia Flannery Footage flashed across television and smartphone screens this week showing rowdy crowds of Sri Lankan protesters mobbing Temple Trees, the official presidential palace in Colombo. Cameras panned across the compound’s lush gardens as jubilant young men jumped into the swimming pool and splashed in its blue waters. Men clad in sandals, […]

By Biswajit Dhar The World Health Organization (WHO) has called it “vaccine apartheid”: developed economies who can pay for Covid-19 vaccines have much higher rates of vaccination than developing economies. Only 21% of people in low-income countries have received at least one Covid-19 vaccine dose, partly because pharmaceutical companies have refused to temporarily waive their […]

By Seela Subba Rao Microfinance institutions (MFIs) have evolved into a vibrant industry exhibiting a variety of business models. In India, they exist as NGOs (registered as societies or trusts), Section 25 companies, NBFC-MFIs and other NBFCs. Commercial banks, regional rural banks, cooperative banks and other large lenders have played an important role in financing […]

By Peter Brian Wang An opportunity has arisen. For small and middle powers, increasingly uncertain and aggressive geosecurity has provided a chance to influence global developments. For the Pacific Islands, their time in the sun may have just begun, and they could look to other regions of the world for clues on how to play […]

By Arun Sinha Old India has been metamorphosing into a New India (Naya Bharat) under the “visionary and dynamic leadership” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi since 2014, so we are told. And Naya Bharat is bringing prosperity to all. Because the spirit that drives the train of New India is Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas. Nobody is going to […]

By Pramod K Nayar The recent news about 46 migrants found dead inside a tractor trailer in San Antonio, Texas, shocked the Americans. Most of the migrants had suffocated to death. All of them were Mexicans, part of the recent surge in migrant crossing from Mexico into the USA. Aylan Kurdi is not so old […]

By Dr K Srinivasa Rao Despite the ongoing twin crisis – lingering Covid-19 and war between Russia and Ukraine, banks have gained strength in the last couple of years. The RBI’s Financial Stability Report-June 2022 reflects improved asset quality and capital adequacy ratio (CAR). The asset quality of banks continued to improve steadily with the […]

By B Yerram Raju I saw the film RRR and wondered how I should title this article on Asset Quality Review (AQR) undertaken by Raghuram Rajan Reforms (RRR) in the banking sector during his regime as Governor. The Economic Survey 2020-21 while criticising the AQR’s inability to prevent the evergreening of loans in the name […]

By Quentin Read The food on our plates has a footprint. Every bite of food we consume represents the environmental impact of all the resources used to produce that food. Land is foremost among those resources. As food is transported from farm to fork, the land used to grow the food is ‘virtually transported’ along […]

By Henryk Szadziewski From small diplomatic measures to a doubling of trade, China’s interests in Pacific Island nations have expanded in the past decade. Now, in a world of growing geopolitical instability and tension over Taiwan, China is in the position of being an enduring partner to the region. China’s former ambassador to the US […]