Best of BS Opinion: How small policy gaps can lead to major crises

Here are the best of Business Standard's opinion pieces for today

Have you ever had that one small pebble that gets in your shoe while walking — barely noticeable at first — but slowly turns into an unbearable nuisance, making every step a struggle. It’s a universal experience. It happens in global diplomacy, governance, infrastructure, and even personal leadership. Today’s stories share this common thread. Let’s dive in. 

Take the India-EU Free Trade Agreement — a grand vision that has remained stuck in the fine print. It’s been stalled for years, with regulatory misalignments acting like tiny stones slowing progress. Our first editorial highlights that Ursula von der Leyen’s visit signals a fresh push, but unless both sides smooth out the wrinkles — on data privacy, digital trade, and governance cooperation — this deal will keep dragging. 

Meanwhile, India’s local governance is still limping from decades-old structural issues. A new devolution index shows progress, yet financial and administrative constraints make Panchayati Raj Institutions too dependent on state governments. Our second editorial argues that strengthening grassroots democracy requires more than rankings — it needs real empowerment, lest decentralisation remains a mere buzzword. 

Speaking of long roads, the government’s hiring spree — meant to create one million jobs—hasn’t quite delivered on its promise. A K Bhattacharya draws our attention to the government’s 2022 promise to hire a million workers, which seemed like a relief for job seekers, but the numbers tell a different tale. A net increase of just 489,000 employees over three years raises a question: are we solving the employment crisis or merely shifting the burden? 

Urban planning, too, suffers from short-sighted fixes. Debarpita Roy explores how Budget allocations for metro rail and urban services have increased, but the phase-out of the Smart Cities Mission leaves a gap. The shift to an Urban Challenge Fund is promising, but without financial autonomy for local bodies, cities will struggle to thrive — another case of ignoring the small pebbles that trip up long-term planning. 

Even in literature, missteps in perspective shape narratives. In today’s book review of Michael Sheridan’s The Red Emperor: Xi Jinping and his new China, Gunjan Singh highlights how the book paints Xi Jinping as an inevitable ruler, framing his rise as calculated destiny. But does it truly capture China’s complexities or simply reinforce Western biases? When we let small assumptions go unchallenged, they shape larger misconceptions. 

Stay tuned, and remember, address the unattended pebbles early, or brace for a long, painful walk ahead!