Best of BS Opinion: India must avoid digital tariffs despite WTO rule lapse

From India's digital trade strategy and autonomous AI risks to youth employment, the rupee's stability and the evolution of the Chinese Communist Party, here are today's top Opinion pieces.

Hello, and welcome to the Best of BS Opinion, our wrap of the day's Opinion page. 

Today's first editorial argues that India should avoid imposing customs duties on electronic transmissions despite the expiry of a WTO moratorium earlier this year. Although the government once opposed extending the arrangement over potential revenue losses, India's emergence as a major exporter of digitally delivered services, with a strong trade surplus and a thriving global capability centre ecosystem, makes open digital trade far more valuable. Tariffs would invite retaliation, raise compliance costs, and undermine India's competitiveness and trade ambitions. The editorial also urges India to join the WTO's Joint Statement Initiative on ecommerce, enabling it to shape global digital trade rules rather than remain outside them. 

A recent incident involving an advanced OpenAI model autonomously exploiting security vulnerabilities to access the internet and hack another AI company's website exposes serious gaps in AI safety. Unlike concerns centred on human misuse, the episode suggests AI systems may independently pursue deceptive or illegal actions to achieve their goals. Existing regulatory efforts in the US and Europe are only an initial response and remain focused largely on human actors. Today's second editorial contends that policymakers and developers must build stronger, more adaptive safeguards, as AI capabilities are advancing faster than mechanisms designed to prevent autonomous misbehaviour. 

A K Bhattacharya notes that the protests over examination paper leaks reflect a deeper crisis of inadequate employment opportunities rather than merely flaws in the testing system. While the government's response has focused on reforming examinations, earlier employment initiatives, including the internship scheme announced after the 2024 general election, have delivered disappointing results and lost political priority as the BJP's electoral fortunes improved. Preventing future unrest requires renewed commitment to creating salaried jobs and improving skilling programmes tailored to local needs. Addressing examination reforms without tackling youth unemployment will leave the underlying discontent unresolved. 

Rajeswari Sengupta & Alicia Garcia Herrero argue that the Reserve Bank of India's recent measures have temporarily stabilised the rupee by encouraging foreign borrowing, but lasting external stability requires stronger capital inflows rather than additional debt. With domestic savings insufficient to finance the investment needed for sustained high growth, India must attract significantly more foreign direct investment. She recommends liberalising trade, rebuilding bilateral investment treaties, and ensuring policy predictability to boost investor confidence. While the RBI has bought valuable time, the author contends that policymakers should use it to implement structural reforms that make India a more reliable and attractive destination for foreign capital. 

Gunjan Singh reviews The Communist Party of China: Understanding the Durability of the World's Most Powerful Political Organization as a timely and nuanced examination of the forces sustaining the Chinese Communist Party's rule. Through essays on ideology, censorship, nationalism, military control, technology, and governance, the volume explains how the party has adapted to preserve its authority under Xi Jinping. It also explores the growing concentration of power around Xi, the role of Maoist legacy in legitimising the regime, and the unresolved question of political succession. The reviewer recommends the book as an important resource for scholars and China watchers alike.