Best of BS Opinion: E85 policy push needs a coherent transport roadmap

From India's biofuel push and FIFA's commercial priorities to pressure on the rupee, shifts in the global arms market and Malayalam cinema's evolution, here are today's key opinion pieces

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

 

India’s launch of E85 fuel and tax incentives for higher ethanol blends demonstrate a strong commitment to expanding the role of biofuels, but also highlight the need for a clear long-term transport strategy, notes our first editorial. Frequent changes in blending targets impose significant costs on automobile manufacturers and risk creating policy uncertainty. While greater ethanol use can reduce oil imports, enhance energy security, and support domestic production, practical challenges remain, including limited flex-fuel vehicle adoption, lower fuel efficiency, and dependence on water-intensive sugarcane. The editorial contends that ethanol, electric vehicles, and biogas should form part of a diversified and complementary energy strategy.

 

 

FIFA has drifted far from the principles of inclusivity, solidarity, and accessibility envisioned by World Cup founder Jules Rimet, says our second editorial. Since retaining all tournament revenues from 2010 onwards, FIFA has increasingly prioritised commercial returns over sporting values, leading to controversial hosting decisions and ethical compromises. The current tournament exemplifies these tensions through restrictive visa policies affecting players, officials, and fans, as well as ticket prices that place matches beyond the reach of ordinary supporters. By embracing revenue maximisation and elite consumption, the editorial contends, FIFA risks alienating the working-class fan base that helped make football the world’s most popular sport.

 

TT Ram Mohan argues that recent government and RBI measures to attract capital inflows may stabilise the rupee temporarily, but are unlikely to eliminate deeper risks. Unlike the 2013 taper tantrum, India is now confronting sustained foreign investor outflows driven by adverse global conditions, including high US yields, trade tensions, and uncertainty over tariffs. The greater threat, however, comes from oil prices. If the Iran conflict persists and crude prices surge sharply, India’s current account deficit could widen further, intensifying pressure on the rupee. The author contends that a pre-emptive interest rate increase merits consideration alongside existing measures.

 

The global arms market is moving away from a structure dominated by the United States and Russia towards a more diverse and competitive order, points out Ajay Kumar. Strategic autonomy is increasingly shaping procurement decisions as buyers seek to reduce dependence on any single supplier. Russia’s constraints, questions over long-term US commitments, China’s growing export presence, and the rise of new Asian suppliers such as Japan, South Korea, and Turkey are accelerating this shift. In this geopolitical context, India is well placed to benefit through its expanding defence industry, technological capabilities, and diplomatic flexibility, provided it can deliver quality, reliability, and innovation at scale.

 

In her review of S. R. Praveen's Ticket to Kerala: The Story of Malayalam Cinema, Neha Kirpal finds that the book offers an accessible and richly detailed account of the Malayalam cinema industry’s evolution from film society activism to its current national prominence. The book links contemporary successes to the cultural and institutional foundations laid by pioneers such as Adoor Gopalakrishnan, John Abraham, G. Aravindan, and Shaji Karun. It explores parallel cinema, independent music, women-led initiatives, queer narratives, and the industry’s response to social change. Praveen’s central achievement is showing how Malayalam cinema’s present vitality is inseparable from its distinctive and innovative past.