Econ & Policy
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India’s New Labour Codes – 2: Wage & Benefit Uniformity
When “wages” finally mean wages — and everyone gets counted Last week, we discussed how the simplification of labour laws benefits employers. But simplification is not a one-sided gift. Employees, too, stand to gain — and in some cases, quite substantially. Overlapping definitions and rules not only increased compliance costs, but employees often did not Continue reading
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India’s New Labour Codes: A Once-in-three-Generations Cleanup
From 29 tangled laws to 4 clear codes — why simplification matters India’s new labour codes were finally (finally!) made effective, only six years after being enacted. Some are touting this as the biggest reform since GST, maybe even bigger. Like GST, it impacts every enterprise or business; but it also directly impacts every employee. Continue reading
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The curious case of India’s quality control orders
How India’s QCO spree became a master-class in shooting ourselves in the foot Several years ago, a group of important policy makers and officials sat down to discuss how to boost domestic production and curtail imports. Some bright spark provided a (seemingly) magic solution – the use of “Quality Control Orders” (QCOs). Under a QCO, Continue reading
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Rare Earths and India: Trying to run with one leg tied
Rare Earths and India: Trying to run with one leg tied In recent months, the term “rare earths” has entered drawing-room conversations, fueled by continuous media coverage. The immediate cause for this is China’s blockade of these (and other critical) minerals and their derivative products, in retaliation for Trump’s tariffs. Suddenly, we learnt that India Continue reading
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From Oil Fields to Algorithms: National Interest is being redefined
After the Second World War, several post-colonial governments seized foreign companies – Latin American oil fields, African ports, Middle Eastern refineries and more. They justified these moves as being in their national interest, seeking to regain control of sovereign assets from the erstwhile colonial owners. Western commentators and media called it “expropriation” and a violation Continue reading
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The needless search for certainty
Humans don’t like uncertainty. And nowhere is this more evident than in economic or business forecasts. Our analysts and economists cater to this need, with a great degree of apparent precision and accuracy. These forecasts further reinforce our belief that such things can actually be predicted. Consider these statements: Sure. As long as no pandemics, Continue reading
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When Twenty-Somethings Build Unicorns and Rockets: The New India
When I finished college in 1983, start-up was not even a word! There were no VCs and no angels. The few brave entrepreneurs were suppressed, heavily taxed, lacked access to capital and were viewed suspiciously by our socialist leaders. The Babus decided who could make what, where and in what quantity – and who they Continue reading
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Wilful destruction of the world’s most powerful economic engine
Wilful destruction of the world’s most powerful economic engine Sitting in my favourite armchair, far from the shenanigans of the US president, one can only watch with shock and awe – the haphazard (or is it systematic?) devastation of an economy that has dominated the world for almost a century. Ever since World War II, Continue reading
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Ease of Doing Tourism
Tourism is never long out of the news. But this news coverage seems to be stuck in a loop – at least for the last 40-odd years since I started reading business news. The loop consists of the following elements: And if it’s not advertising, then poor infrastructure (airports and hotels) is blamed. And much Continue reading
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Is 6.5% Growth Making India Complacent?
What if India’s economic achievement is also its biggest trap? This thought hit me while chatting with a fund manager friend a couple of days ago, about the pace of reform. Nowadays, we hear ad nauseam about India being the fastest-growing “large” economy. And this, despite the fierce headwinds from global economic crises. It’s not Continue reading
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