Best of BS Opinion: Accountability gaps at home and uncertainty abroad

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

The aviation regulator’s decision to fine IndiGo Rs 22.20 crore for the flight disruptions that paralysed air travel in December has raised more questions than it has answered. Industry bodies have called the penalty inadequate, especially when more than 2,500 flights were cancelled and nearly 1,900 delayed, affecting over 300,000 travellers. Spread across the period of alleged non-compliance, the fine works out to roughly Rs 30 lakh a day, a figure that has sharpened criticism of regulatory resolve, notes our first editorial. Attention is now turning to whether the CCI’s ongoing probe will more directly address questions around IndiGo’s market dominance and operational practices. 

 

Meanwhile, at Davos, geopolitical unease rather than economic optimism set the tone, with tensions between the US and Europe dominating discussions, highlights our second editorial. Pressure from the Donald Trump administration, including tariff threats and rhetoric over Greenland, has exposed Europe’s vulnerability to American leverage. While military dependence remains real, Europe’s economic exposure is more uneven, concentrated in sectors such as German automobiles, French luxury goods and Irish pharmaceuticals. The argument here is that an early conclusion of an EU-India FTA would serve India’s interests in stabilising global trade norms. 

Shyam Saran examines how China has recalibrated its Yuan ambitions, shifting from overt rivalry with the dollar to a more defensive strategy centred on sanction resilience. Beijing has expanded renminbi trade settlement, reduced exposure to US Treasuries, built parallel payment systems and accumulated gold, all while stopping short of full convertibility. At the same time, it has welcomed foreign capital through bond and equity indices. The lesson for India, Saran suggests, lies in balancing openness with insulation against external shocks. 

And Amit Kapoor turns to urban governance, arguing that the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban now faces limits to what cleanliness metrics alone can achieve. While rankings have driven real improvements in waste management, recent water contamination in Indore shows that public health risks remain under-addressed. Kapoor argues that a shift in measurement towards water safety, disease prevention and emergency readiness is the need of the hour. 

Finally, Akankshya Abismruta reviews Anne Irfan’s A Short History of the Gaza Strip, which places the current war within decades of displacement and control. Tracing Gaza’s modern history from 1948 to Hamas’ rise, the book avoids prescriptions and instead offers context, reminding readers how long the region’s unresolved questions have endured. The review highlights Irfan’s emphasis on context over prescription, including her discussion of Israel’s shifting policies, the constraints imposed by prolonged military rule, and the gradual erosion of Palestinian political agency. 

Stay tuned!