Opinion

Kaushik Basu Something strange is happening in the US labour market. The latest data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that the US economy lost 23,000 jobs in July, yet the unemployment rate actually fell to 4.1 per cent. A closer look helps...

Purna Chandra Jena In India, the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) has, since 2017-18, become the most reliable indicator for states to assess their labour markets. For Odisha — long stereotyped as a mineral-rich but job-scarce economy — the PLFS now reveals a markedly different...

Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom Sixty years ago, harsh autocratic rule dominated a region at the eastern edge of a continent. Quixotic quests for political change seemed to have little chance of succeeding—until they did. By the end of the 20th century, competitive elections had become the...

For five centuries, raw materials have flowed out of Africa and Brazil at low cost to be used as inputs elsewhere—often returning to their source countries embedded in expensive finished goods. The energy transition offers a critical opportunity to escape this extractive dynamic. The key...

India’s ethanol policy has become a classic case of solving one problem by creating several others. A programme designed to reduce oil imports has expanded into sugar, rice, maize, water, food stocks and even livestock-feed policy. The question is no longer whether ethanol can be...

By Bhaskar Nath Biswal The Modi government’s decision to send one Union Minister to one university every day, under what is being called the One Day, One University programme, is being pitched as a major outreach to India’s Gen Z. With over 1,300 universities in...

By Dhurjati Mukherjee The Cockroach Janata Party’s launching of “School Thik Karo” campaign with an aim to improve condition of government schools in rural areas across the country, is refreshing. Imagine the state of education which has its share in the Union budget having declined...

By Djoomart Otorbaev For a major infrastructure project to succeed, it must be underpinned by sustained political support and sound economics. When political and strategic considerations are allowed to dominate decision-making, and long-term economic assessments suffer as a result, projects can fail before they start....

By Gabriela Ramos Last month, China announced the creation of the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organisation, a 38-country platform focused on AI cooperation, bridging the AI divide by supporting innovation and deployment in developing countries. WAICO marks a turning point, but not the one the...

By Bruhaspati Samal A government's priorities are often revealed by the contrast in its treatment of different sections of society. Two recent Parliamentary replies by the Minister of State for Finance present precisely such a contrast. Nearly 10 lakh crore in corporate loans have been...