BUSINESS
Forces veterans doubt efficacy of new recruitment scheme
The foremost need is to have a more technically trained but smaller force able to handle the new sophisticated equipment being acquired. So the aim really should be to reduce headcount and raise training hours. The new scheme falls down on both counts
BUSINESS
Use poor show in environmental performance to take right policies forward
Instead of getting unduly aggressive about our low rank, a better approach would be to consider the reasons for our poor performance and change policies accordingly
BUSINESS
Ethanol makes sense right now, but the future belongs to solar, wind power
Since sugar is a water-guzzler, the policy focus should be to encourage the use of bio wastes like rice straw, corn cobs, stalks, stems and bagasse to produce ethanol
BUSINESS
Pakistan in economic crisis as reserves plunge
The fundamental problem facing its economy is that it stands on a weak political foundation
BUSINESS
Dream freight corridors need a wake-up call
What began as a Rs 21,000 crore project is now set to cost Rs 1.2 lakh crore, that is nearly six times more
TRENDS
The pandemic has wreaked havoc on the learning abilities of children
The results of the latest National Achievement Survey will help in systematically understanding the consequences of prolonged closure of schools in terms of children’s “socio-emotional and cognitive development”
ECONOMY
Export push goes awry on knee-jerk government policy
The way in which the new restrictions have been imposed mark a journey towards more discretionary regulation
BUSINESS
PM’s advisory council takes a leaf out of civil society playbook
A report commissioned by the PM’s economic advisory council has called for an urban equivalent of the rural employment guarantee scheme and introducing a universal basic income
BUSINESS
Let the rupee depreciate
If India imports a major share of the energy it consumes and energy prices across the world are skyrocketing, then the Indian economic system must come to live with it and build high import costs into its pricing
BUSINESS
Why are so many Indians not looking for work?
Bangladesh, which is poorer than India and also mostly rural, has a much higher female labour force participation rate
INDIA
CAG courts controversy as it moves with the times
A creative tension exists between the government and its internal auditor
BUSINESS
India will get older before it gets richer
India's demographic dividend will last for some time but cease growing. The right policies, however, can still lead to better outcomes
BUSINESS
Indian startups score unicorn century
There is a chance for India to go up even further in the unicorn pecking order as China has recently cracked down on its tech companies in order to gain better control over them. This has made investment into China, till recently the technology hub to be in, less attractive
BUSINESS
Heat wave threatens to scorch export windfall
Higher export demand for wheat may be good for India but the prospect of a heat wave singeing output is causing some worries
BUSINESS
Where have all the jobs gone?
At the overall level, many youngsters are finding it difficult to get jobs because of the lack of appropriate skills
BUSINESS
Digital banking units in district headquarters not a big deal
The focus should instead be on strengthening digital infrastructure in the villages, since district towns are already well served, especially by NBFCs
BUSINESS
K shape dominates Indian economy, but there is a way out
A Motilal Oswal study finds that in the nine-month April-December period of 2021-22, when a broad economic recovery was on, the Centre’s resources “improved tremendously”, even as the states lagged far behind with total resource mobilisation at the lowest level in two decades
BUSINESS
Powerless against freebies: Plight of Punjab and other states
The finances of Punjab and other states which have announced a range of freebies are unsustainable
BUSINESS
IMF paper supports the case for distributing free food
Surjit Bhalla’s paper will certainly have its share of criticism, but what cannot be denied is that the government’s free food programme during the pandemic has played a stellar role in keeping millions out of abject poverty
BUSINESS
Sri Lanka’s downhill journey and lessons for India
The lessons for India from the Sri Lanka fiasco are that rulers need to be humble, follow the conventional advice given by officials, in particular the central bank, and above all else stay wedded to fiscal discipline
BUSINESS
The way out of a K-shaped recovery
The economic recovery so far has not reached the bottom economic layer of India's population. Policy options that create more jobs for them need to be explored
BUSINESS
General Strike | The unionised public sector employee is part of the ‘haves’ and not ‘have nots’ of society
General strike re-enacts a drill but will achieve little
POLITICS
CUET is a good idea, but faces hurdles due to hurried introduction
Teachers fear that performance in the class XII board exams will be greatly devalued as students will cease to care for them, knowing that how well you do in them matters little
BUSINESS
Microfinance gets a leg-up with new regulation
A new set of regulations for microfinance seeks to promote the sector’s growth while imposing more responsibility on lenders as well
