Page 3 - Editorial Comment

The learning curve: QS rankings reflect gaps in education governance

India's slipping university ranks signal deep cracks in higher education quality - reforms must focus on academic freedom, research excellence, and teaching standards to stay globally competitive

Prioritise safety: Weaknesses in railways must be addressed quickly

The Bilaspur collision is a stark reminder that India's railway expansion must be matched by a stronger, technology-driven safety culture focused on prevention, not reaction

Zohran Mamdani's NYC win signals a turn towards the Left in US politics

Progressive Zohran Mamdani's stunning NYC win and key Democratic victories in Virginia, New Jersey, and California signal headwinds for Trump ahead of next year's US mid-term polls

Thin ice: States are drowning in debt and politics keeps adding weight

Cash transfers to women need a wider debate

Government should reconsider its outdated restrictions on FDI in ecommerce

To be sure, the concerns of small traders should not be dismissed. But protecting them need not mean stifling progress permanently

New maritime policy can revive India's shipbuilding, boost employment

The creation of a Maritime Development Fund can provide the much-needed long-term, low-cost capital, which shipyards and shipping companies require

On top of the world: Institutional support has empowered women's cricket

The euphoria over a famous victory should not detract from the fact that the women's cricket has a long distance to travel to catch up with the men's game

Policy transparency: Report on missing inflation target must be released

The framework has been designed to make the monetary policy transparent. For instance, the law mandates even the publication of the MPC meeting calendar well in advance

NCR's air pollution problem needs hard decisions from states, Centre

The Delhi government's well-meant cloud-seeding experiment to contain pollution must be viewed in this context

After the Chabahar exemption, India must push for a trade deal with the US

The pause of the export restrictions on rare earths and magnets will be a particular relief to many places, including the European Union and India, which had been caught in the crossfire

Services sector needs employment-intensive structural transformation

This "growth-employment disconnect" seems to be defining India's services story. Modern services are capital-intensive and globally tradable, generating high productivity but few jobs

India must build on macroeconomic stability, use trade as growth engine

This mix of policy choices made over the years has enabled a stable macroeconomic environment

8th Pay Commission must consider liabilities stemming from wages, pensions

It will always be hard for the government to follow market mechanisms, but systems must be adjusted to reflect the broader economic reality

Fire-and-forget: Retail investors starting to see virtues of passive funds

While India's households have invested heavily in equity mutual funds over the past five years, most investors have favoured active schemes

Amazon's automation drive could reshape global logistics and workforce

The company has responded to the news report with a statement that these are projections made by only one division (its robotics division) and they are not necessarily correct

A real burden: Tax disputes worth trillions are choking India's growth

With ₹16 trillion locked in unresolved tax disputes, India must urgently reform its judicial and tax systems to clear backlogs and restore investor confidence in a rule-based economy

Overlapping crises: How global warming is deepening global poverty

Since climate change is a global phenomenon, it is equally critical that countries work on mutually reinforcing climate-action plans beyond the individual emission-reduction targets

End unpredictability: Leaders of US, China must step back from trade brink

The exact outline of what has been decided is not known - and may never be known - especially if one or both the leaders end up rejecting it

Governments must exercise caution in these times of AI overinvestment

Within the sector, however, there are signs that reflect not just a classic boom-and-bust cycle building up, but also that significant systemic risks are being ignored

SME IPO wave: High subscriptions and quick listing gains mask deeper risks

The surge in IPO listing has been fuelled by a resilient domestic economy, enabling government policies such as simplified listing norms, and the integration of digital payment systems