News: India’s latest drone rules have given a new life to operations in mining, energy, infrastructure and land records. Door-to-door drone delivery as a daily convenience may still be a bit in the future. While drone delivery pilots have become bigger, commercial applications at a wider scale is yet to happen. Contents1 What are some… Continue reading India’s drone companies are soaring in these 4 sectors
Tag: gs paper 3
The NMP is hardly the panacea for growth in India
News: Govt. unveiled the National Monetisation Programme (NMP) in August 2021. Under NMP, ₹6 trillion is expected to be raised by leasing core assets of the Central government over the course of four years (FY2022 to FY2025). But, a more critical area towards which policymakers must pay attention is the investigation of the key reasons… Continue reading The NMP is hardly the panacea for growth in India
On Algorithmic trading/Algos: Regulate, don’t stifle
News: In a consultation paper last week, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) proposed regulating retail or third-party algorithmic trading (algos). Contents1 What is algorithmic trading/Algos?2 What are the risks involved in algorithmic trading/ Algos?3 Why SEBI wants to regulate retail or third-party algorithmic trading?4 What are the proposed regulatory changes?5 What are… Continue reading On Algorithmic trading/Algos: Regulate, don’t stifle
We need a renewed conversation on economic inequality in India
News: Gaps of income and wealth have worsened after liberalization, causing various ramifications, including political ones. A response is clearly necessary. Contents1 What are the stats to substantiate that the wealth gap in India is increasing?2 What are the implications?3 How the income and wealth inequality in India is having political ramifications?4 What is the… Continue reading We need a renewed conversation on economic inequality in India
Boosting agrifood life sciences is key to India’s agricultural future
News: Innovations in Agrifood life sciences in India remain deeply neglected by venture capital investors and even entrepreneurs. For instance, globally, $6 billion was invested in agrifood life sciences startups in 2020, while India raised slightly over $10 million. India is becoming a global outlier, with the US, Israel, Europe, and China all building unicorn… Continue reading Boosting agrifood life sciences is key to India’s agricultural future
On COP26: Home truths on climate change
News: Surprising many, India announced its net-zero target, including many other new commitments, at the recently held COP 26 meeting in Glasgow. This has established India as a world leader in fighting the climate change crisis. But, there is a gap between what the government says on the international stage and what it does at home.… Continue reading On COP26: Home truths on climate change
On USO Fund: Speed up broadband roll-out
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
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
