opinion

India’s energy mix needs to be finely balanced

Policy initiatives should aim at firing up renewable power but, at the same time, take into account the necessity of fossil fuel for some more decades

The government’s vaccine cost dilemma

There are two potential suppliers – but only one has proven efficacy. And that is causing a problem in negotiating the cost of the vaccine

A revolutionary proposal to the Finance Minister for the Union Budget 2021

I would like to propose a deeper, more meaningful, far more fundamental reform, one that would leave an indelible mark on budget-making for all time to come

Fed officials fretted over virus surge at December meeting

Even if the economic rebound is remarkable, officials have been clear that they are likely to remain patient in taking support away from the economy

A Mob and the Breach of Democracy: The violent end of the Trump era

“American carnage,” it turned out, was not what Trump would stop, as he promised upon taking office, but what he wound up delivering four years later to the very building where he took the oath

India set to play a vital role in global digital economy

The Indian technology industry’s talent machine coupled with fully distributed global delivery models is likely to play an important role in the transformation journey of the global digital economy in the years to come

India needs a new narrative on international trade

Focus on export promotion and export orientation in domestic industrial production are necessary building blocks for effecting a paradigm shift in our economic structure

Update laws to keep India’s health system future-ready

As the economy and healthcare systems try to emerge from the crisis, there is a need to reconsider how to build a system that is ready and responsive in order to prevent and protect the public from emerging threats

The nightmarish end to Donald Trump’s presidency

The scenes of ransacking the Congress will go down in infamy in American democracy

US Capitol violence: Is the attack similar to Germany's Beer Hall putsch in 1923?

The US is fortunate that Donald Trump is such an incompetent bungler, such a pompous windbag. Future authoritarian leaders may be far more ruthlessly efficient

Budget 2021 | Why the World Bank doesn’t believe the Indian recovery will be V-shaped

The World Bank believes the pandemic has lowered potential growth — the output that can be sustained at full employment and capacity utilization — in the Indian economy by eroding growth in human capital and investment

Is Saudi Arabia’s voluntary production cut an act of desperation?

The production cut by Saudi Arabia also means that the country has not been able to convince the non-OPEC members to toe its line, thus exposing its waning influence in the group

The vaccine controversy deals a big blow to India’s global profile

The unseemly hurry to hand out approvals without adequate data in at least one case has long term implications for the Indian vaccine industry’s reputation

Indian IT is all set to build on pandemic era gains

Having missed out on the gold rush following the onset of cloud computing, the best Indian IT firms are perfectly placed not to miss out this time

Budget 2021 | Unshackle the gold held by India’s households

With the Finance Minister set to present the Budget in a few weeks, it is important for the government to announce measures that will unshackle the large capital held with households in the form of gold

In 2021, can the BJP juggernaut be stopped?

There is only one party that can possibly halt the BJP juggernaut: the Congress. But at the moment the grand old party seems frail. Can the Congress resuscitate itself, galvanised by a new leader, or will it relinquish further space to the BJP?

December Composite PMI: Budget should take into account the slowing recovery in services 

The IHS Markit India Composite PMI lost momentum in November and December and much depends on the pace of vaccination

Facebook’s push into Asia-Pacific runs into political hurdles

After refusing to kowtow to Beijing’s demands to censor its users, among other requests, the social media giant has been locked out of the country ever since

It’s high time SEBI took a serious look at the block and bulk deal window

There have been many instances where the information of the deal is leaked and front-runners jump in

Home sales: A case for sustained upcycle ahead

 With real rates turning negative and a steep drop in bond yields and bank deposit rates, the attractiveness of owning physical assets has improved 

Serum Institute gets ahead in COVID-19 vaccine, but opportunity still exists for others

Serum Institute alone cannot inoculate the entire population at one go. This leaves enough space for competitor vaccines, provided they succeed in clinical trials

In developing vaccines, let science win over flag waving

India seems to be going down the path of Russia and China, in the lack of transparency about vaccine approval

$900 billion won’t carry Biden very far

As Biden has made clear, it is simply a “down payment” — a brief bridge to get through a dark winter and not nearly enough to restore the economy’s health