Go Easy on Amazon and Flipkart

The FDI in e-commerce policy clarifications made by the DIPP was done in order to help the small retailers from getting exploited at the hands of the big e-commerce players. While it may help them in the short run, an atmosphere that is not conducive to investment in this sector is bound to hurt them in the long run.Both Amazon and Flipkart have planned to approach the government together to reconsider these provisions. If they fail to convince the government, they will shrink the size of their future investments. This can have a significant negative effect on the entire e-commerce sector and can lead to job losses due to the closing of their private labels. Not to mention the loss of the number of jobs they would have created by their extension plans. Cities in the US are fighting with each other to provide incentives and attract Amazon’s second headquarters, while the Indian government is driving away from the investment.Finally, the decision is bound to hurt the Indian consumers. By limiting the number of discounts given by the private labels, the consumers will have to pay a higher price for their purchases. It will also reduce the variety of goods that are available to the consumers for online purchases.Vertical integration can have anti-competitive practices but can be dealt with in a far more efficient manner than outright bans on such operations. Antitrust authorities across the world have tools to recognise and prevent practices that can hurt consumers and small retailers. The competition commission can be given the mandate to develop these tools and implement them instead of killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.Finally, this would also be the right time to revisit the policy of not allowing FDI in multi-brand retail. The parochial fears of potential harm to small retailers are overplayed in the public discourse. All of the small retailers in question have benefited massively from the presence of these platforms. They are now able to reach an unimaginable number of customers because of the platform. Similarly, multi-brand retail can have a massive positive effect on economic growth and job creation.Read More

Moneycontrol | A framework for technological sovereignty without being insular

Technological sovereignty emphasises national control over critical technologies while balancing security, innovation, and international cooperation, avoiding corporate dominance and ensuring citizens' rights within a fair global technological framework

By Arindam Goswami

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The Diplomat | China Revises PLA Regulations to Focus on ‘Conscious Discipline’

As a code of conduct for the PLA, the revised regulations are further expected to emphasize combat effectiveness as the military’s top priority.

By Anushka Saxena

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Money Control | Locust invasion threat demands India-Pakistan co-operation

As the locust breeding season approaches, both India and Pakistan must depoliticise locust management and prioritise it as a humanitarian imperative. Using technology like drones, weather models, and AI predictions to track, forecast and control the movements of locusts to protect crops

By Rakshith Shetty and Keerthi Shree

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Indian Express | The colonial era of AI is here — India must chart its own course

The Paris AI Action Summit, with its impressive array of declarations and initiatives, could not mask a deeper geopolitical reality: We have entered the colonial era of artificial intelligence, where corporate sovereignty increasingly trumps national sovereignty, and global governance and ethics have been put on the backburner while still being paid lip service. The final declaration by the real power players— the US and the UK — speaks volumes. They are the tech giants who have effectively colonised the digital frontier.

By Arindam Goswami

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Moneycontrol | India rolls out the red carpet for private nuclear firms

France and India last week declared an intent to partner each other to develop advanced modular nuclear reactors and SMRs. Juxtaposed with the recent union budget’s proposals to rework India’s legal framework for nuclear energy and set a rather ambitious capacity addition target, there’s a clear signal to the private sector to step in.

By Lokendra Sharma

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The Hindu | Implications of the AI Diffusion Framework

India has set ambitious goals for its space programme in the next two decades. These goals hinge on powerful, reusable rockets such as the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)’s upcoming Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV). In addition to the NGLV, India must tap into its private sector to develop more such rockets in order to secure strategic autonomy in its access to outer space.

By Ashwin Prasad

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Money Control | US BioSecure Act: Impact on India and Biotech Opportunities in Supply Chain Shifts

The BioSecure Act seeks to reduce US-China biotech ties, creating the potential for India to become a biomanufacturing hub. However, India's biotech sector must overcome challenges in innovation, regulatory standards, and technology to attract businesses shifting from China.

By Anisree Suresh

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Firstpost | Paris AI Summit: How Indo-French partnership can be a rule maker for future innovations

As co-chair of the AI Action Summit in Paris, India, under the prime ministership of Narendra Modi, has the opportunity to kickstart a new chapter in global technological cooperation. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has a pervasive impact across different sectors. In that sense, it is a general-purpose technology (GPT), to borrow the term from Jeffrey Ding’s GPT Diffusion Theory, which promises to reshape various sectors. Nations are grappling with both its enormous potential and inherent challenges. Now is the time to come together and collaborate on setting a strong foundation for the years to come.

With its considerable experience in building and running a vast digital public infrastructure, coupled with a workforce that has proven expertise in software development, India could become an important voice in the global AI discourse

By Arindam Goswami

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Moneycontrol | Despite its laudable intent, One Nation One Subscription is not a silver bullet

The laudable intent of the One Nation One Subscription notwithstanding, it may not solve the problem of knowledge creation for educational institutions in tier 2 and tier 3 cities of India. A holistic approach for such institutions is required.

By Lokendra Sharma and Shambhavi Naik

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Firstpost | Creative insecurity: What India can learn from Chinese DeepSeek saga

DeepSeek benefitted from a supportive structural Chinese research and development ecosystem that existed for several decades. Also, Xi Jinping’s vision for a ‘Chinese Dream’ and national rejuvenation is rooted in technological supremacy

By Arindam Goswami and Shobhankita Reddy

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The Hindu | The U.S.’s immigration blocks as a self-defeating path

What do we see in the bustling corridors of Silicon Valley, the research labs of Boston, and the biotech hubs of San Diego? Skilled immigrants do not just fill jobs; they create them. They launch startups, file patents and drive innovation, expanding the very foundation of American employment.

However, to understand this, we need to challenge our most basic assumptions about how labour markets work in knowledge economies.

The debate over H-1B visas in the United States seems to hinge on a seemingly very intuitive argument: that restricting skilled immigration will translate into more jobs for native workers. On the contrary, extensive research has shown that this approach is flawed and, in fact, counterproductive to innovation and job creation.

By Arindam Goswami

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The New Indian Express | Is China's mega dam project a geopolitical weapon under the guise of development?

Given the ecological, social and geopolitical impacts of the project on the Yarlung Tsangpo, known as the Brahmaputra in India, China must commit to international norms for equitable resource sharing and data exchange.

By Y Nithiyanandam

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The Diplomat | Y Nithiyanandam on the Risks of China’s Ambitious Yarlung Tsangpo Project

“Without greater transparency on the part of China and cooperative frameworks, this dam could become a flashpoint in an already delicate regional equilibrium”

By Y Nithiyanandam

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Deccan Herald | A River Beyond Borders

Alterations to Brahmaputra’s flow can adversely affect the dependencies on Teesta – its major tributary – which originates from the Khangtse glacier in the northeastern Himalayas of India.

By Swathi Kalyani

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Deccan Herald | Delimitation and its complex play of disparities

The past few decades have brought drastic changes in states’ populations, leading to two main problems – a high population/MP ratio and dramatic variation across states. Addressing this will require a package of solutions rather than a single silver bullet.

By Miheer Karandikar

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News18 | Opinion | Atal Innovation Mission: Building An Ecosystem For Technological Diffusion

AIM focuses on accelerating innovation; the path to that is not just via capturing first-mover advantage, but also by creating linkages to enable cross-sectoral adaptation of technologies

By Arindam Goswami and Bhaskari J

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Deccan Herald | DPDP Rules and a missed opportunity

The draft DPDP Rules fail to address many of the ambiguities and concerns surrounding the DPDP Act. Additionally, some provisions in the rules appear to undermine rather than protect individual privacy, raising further doubts about their effectiveness.

By Anwesha Sen

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Outlook Business | How Satellite Internet Can Bridge India’s Digital Divide and Expand Its Strategic Heft

Recent events in India highlight the growing prevalence of satellite-based internet technologies. In the Northeast state of Manipur, Indian security forces recovered a Starlink dish and router with weapons during a raid. This is not an isolated occurrence; another Starlink device was recently found in a drug-bust off the Andaman coast. Authorities suspect that these devices were smuggled in from Myanmar, where Starlink is reportedly active despite lacking regulatory approval. It is likely being used to circumvent government-imposed internet restrictions there. These incidents highlight the potential as well as the penetration of space-based technologies like satellite internet.

By Ashwin Prasad & Rakshith Shetty

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Deccan Herald | Soaring over traffic

The rise of eVOTL technology demands new governance structures distinct from conventional aviation. This includes rules for aircraft certification, urban operations, pilot training, and vertiport construction. For a growing economy like India, seizing this opportunity early is vital to realising the potential benefits of eVTOL technology. The country must address regulatory gaps with air traffic management and pilot training rules and develop a roadmap to support eVTOL technology and infrastructure for building a robust urban air mobility ecosystem.

By Avinash Shet

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