R Jagannathan

Demography without a TFR obsession: Rethinking birth-rate solutions

Demography may be destiny, but the solutions do not lie in asking women to sacrifice more than they already have

Underwhelming economics Nobel: Winners reveal little we didn't already know

Conclusion of laureates Acemoglu, Johnson, Robinson - that prosperity depends on good (non-extractive) institutions, inclusion, rule of law - seems underwhelming, as these values are self-explanatory

Good enough vs ideal: Incremental GST reforms may outshine rapid changes

Our guiding principle in taxation should be driven by the principle of what works, not what is theoretically the best idea. The good enough should not be made the enemy of the ideal

Difficult but crucial: Discussing high immigration and demographic changes

Political correctness should not prevent us from discussing them

Avoiding quota dystopia

It is time we tried different approaches before merit and talent are completely sidelined

Uncle Sam's dollar Ponzi scheme

US's terrible political and economic leadership will ultimately cost the dollar its value. India must act early to avoid being dragged down

How 2024 was never a done deal

The exit pollsters owe us an apology, and so does the Congress to the Election Commission

The post-June 4 challenges

Both majority and coalition govts will have to rule by consensus henceforth

Democracy, autocracy, or both?

Most democracies, or autocracies, fall in a category of one. Why then are we trying to judge all of them in the same way?

A non-binary worldview

The Western paradigm of 'my way or the highway' is no longer workable. It is time to accept complexity and contradictions as the norm

The post-May 2024 dilemma

Even if we have a majority government, economic performance will be sub-optimal without political consensus on reforms

Ayodhya & India's new tryst with destiny

UP's economic rise will be, in part, driven by religious tourism, and that is a welcome development

Nationalism is back, and it's a good thing

It is Western "universalism", the old wolf of imperialism in lamb's clothing, that is questionable

Suppressio veri, suggestio falsi

Why quota proponents and social justice warriors are never called to account for their failed remedies

Democracy, ONOP, governance

Democracies are withering everywhere and require constant reform. In India, one-nation-one-poll is a good idea, but it cannot work as a standalone reform

De-hyping climate change

We need hybrid solutions to adapt to climate change, not panic-driven funding of net-zero goals

2024: The case for status quo

An alliance formed solely to oust Narendra Modi is simply not the right vehicle to steady the economic ship

From quota madness to meritocracy

Quotas cannot be abolished without better alternatives, but where is the conversation about the latter?

Taxes must be low in low-trust India

But politicians are using taxpayer funds to get elected, making a low-tax regime difficult

The race to make humans redundant

AI cannot be controlled by policy changes. We need to adapt and prepare for the fallout