https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-hydrogen-could-be-the-next-big-energy-source
Hydrogen could become the most attractive fuel worldwide
RN Bhaskar
On 3 February 2022, Japan’s energy agency NEDO, decided to hold a webinar on Hydrogen and the Fuel Cell perspective in Japan. It was one of the first attempts by any...
https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-budget-2022-is-high-on-big-plans-short-on-a-reality-check
Budget-22: Sightless and derelict
RN Bhaskar
Everybody was aware that the three critical problems confronting India are unemployment, health, and education. One expected Budget-22 to address them.
To some extent, the employment issue may have been addressed (not entirely though). But health...
https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-is-google-using-its-power-and-popularity-responsibly
Google brush with the regulators in India
But many answers are not forthcoming
RN Bhaskar
Google is expected to do the unusual all the time. It has many firsts to its credit. It changed the search engine ecosystem. The music video environment....
https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-maharashtra-wants-to-raise-money-through-an-unequal-na-tax-even-while-waiving-other-taxes
Maharashtra's new, unfair and controversial, real estate tax laws
RN Bhaskar
In December 2021, the government of Maharashtra began sending non-agricultural tax (NA Tax) demand notices to residents in some parts of Mumbai. This was based on legislations that the state...
https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-wrong-diagnosis-and-refusal-to-accept-warning-signals-were-responsible-for-indias-slippage
India's economy - the clock is invariably slow
Ah! the clock is always slow.// It is later than you think
– Robert W Service
(https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/46651/it-is-later-than-you-think)
RN Bhaskar
There was a time when most people had the confidence that the economy would be pulled...
https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-treatment-meted-out-to-edible-oil-reflects-the-concern-for-farmer-welfare
Edible oil and agriculture in India
RN Bhaskar
The government works hard to project itself as being farmer-friendly. It likes to maintain that it is committed to a self-reliant India (atma nirbhar Bharat). But if one looks at the government’s policies...
https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-farmers-need-msp-till-commodity-markets-mature-and-become-reliable
For desperate farmers, and broken commodity exchanges, MSP is the solution
RN Bhaskar
Ever since the government backtracked and repealed the three farm laws, there has been a concerted effort to show that the farmers were and remain misguided. That Minimum...
https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-india-is-slipping-on-exports-and-employment
Focus on two E’s needed – exports and employment
RN Bhaskar
Work on the coming year’s annual Budget has commenced. The Finance Minister has invited suggestions from people on what should be done. At the same time, the Economic Affairs secretary...
https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-corporate-performance-3-value-added-is-extremely-important-for-developing-countries
Corporate groups-3
VA and exports are excellent indicators of financial performance
By RN Bhaskar (the first two parts of this series can be found at
https://asiaconverge.com/2021/11/money-makes-the-world-go-round/ and
https://asiaconverge.com/2021/12/corporate-groups-2-are-they-profitable/
In this last part of our series on analysing the performance of corporate groups, we look...
https://www.freepressjournal.in/analysis/policy-watch-textiles-ii-apparel-apparition
T & A II: Missing a sound apparel policy
RN Bhaskar - The first part of this article can be found at https://asiaconverge.com/2021/11/indias-textiles-and-apparels-can-achieve-a-lot-more/)
When people learn no tools of judgment and merely follow their hopes, the seeds of political manipulation are...