News: It has been almost two decades since the Union government’s telecom policy set aside 5% of its receipts from the sector towards the Universal Service Obligation (USO) fund. The USO fund now totals in excess of Rs 1 trillion. The management of this fund is often in question. Also, in light of the size… Continue reading On USO Fund: Speed up broadband roll-out
Category: 9 PM Daily Articles
Bank-NBFC co-lending: how it works, and the concerns it raises
News: Several banks have entered into co-lending ‘master agreements’ with NBFCs, and more are in the pipeline Recently, the RBI permitted the banks to co-lend with all registered NBFCs (including HFCs) to increase lending to the priority sector based on a prior agreement. This has led to unusual tie-ups between banks and NBFCs. For instance,… Continue reading Bank-NBFC co-lending: how it works, and the concerns it raises
The tug of war within the gig economy
News: This year, Uber lost a significant legal battle against its workers in the UK. The U. K’s Supreme Court upheld a previous ruling by the employment tribunal that the 25 drivers who had brought a case against Uber are indeed employees and not contractors. Consequently, Uber announced that it would start treating all its… Continue reading The tug of war within the gig economy
Why Farmers Won, People Lost
News: Lesson that can be learnt from the farm laws episode for navigating reforms in the future. Economic reforms produce winners and losers. In the case of farm laws, losers were the relatively large farmers with a marketable surplus, who feared losing the protection of the minimum support price (MSP). On the other side, potential… Continue reading Why Farmers Won, People Lost
“The kind of engineering education we need”
Introduction Current education curriculum is completely detached from a student’s life. It is highly theoretical and leaves very less space for intellectual development. For example- Students of class 10th are expected to learn about DC motors and parallel resistances. Whereas reality is that less than 50 per cent of Class 8 students of rural government schools can do division. (ASER Report 2016-18… Continue reading “The kind of engineering education we need”
“State declarations must not be made via twitter”
A false tweet was sent out claiming that “India has officially adopted Bitcoin as a legal tender” and that “government has officially bought 500 BTC and is distributing them to all residents of the country”. This is the second such hacking instance of PM’s account in a year, last time the fake tweet appealed for donations in cryptocurrency to the Prime… Continue reading “State declarations must not be made via twitter”
“Karnataka government has done right thing by adding eggs to mid day meals”
News– Karnataka is the last southern state to introduce eggs in its mid day meal program. It has recently introduced eggs to its mid-day meal scheme in some of its districts to solve the acute malnutrition problem there. Unfortunately, this policy is facing backlash by some religious groups. Why adding eggs to mid-day meal menu is a good step? Eggs (or milk or bananas) are a wholesome food and… Continue reading “Karnataka government has done right thing by adding eggs to mid day meals”
The case for deeper technological ties with London
News: This week, Prime Minister of UK is set to address the Carnegie India’s Global Technology Summit convened annually in partnership with the Ministry of External Affairs. When Delhi thinks of technological cooperation with major powers, the US, Europe and Japan come to mind. But, the missing link in India’s technological space, however, is the… Continue reading The case for deeper technological ties with London
A global gateway to creating links, not dependencies
News: With its new Global Gateway strategy, the European Union is showing how it can aid investors, partners and people, without any debt traps, and with projects that are sustainable and serve the needs of local populations. What is the Global Gateway strategy? – Read here How EU is forging global partnerships with various countries?… Continue reading A global gateway to creating links, not dependencies
Fathoming the new world disorder
News: The inconclusive wars the U.S. fought in recent years has allowed its regional rivals an opportunity wherein they are trying to maximise their influence, even at the risk of triggering more conflicts. This transition, from American unipolarity into something that is still unknown, has put America in a strategic dilemma: Should it stay focused… Continue reading Fathoming the new world disorder
