TMSEp441: 9 yrs of Modi, EU's Meta fine, LIC stock, Sengol

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has completed nine years in office. Between bowing down at the steps of Parliament to stepping into a new Parliament building, these nine years were marked with several challenges-- including the once-in-a-century pandemic. But how do we judge the performance of any government? One of the ways is to find out how the predecessor performed. We analyse how the governments led by Narendra Modi and Manmohan Singh performed on select economic and social indicators across applicable periods. 

What may also go down as one of the hallmarks of the Modi government is its proposed privacy law. The reworked Digital Personal Data Protection Bill is likely to be tabled in the Monsoon session of Parliament. Meanwhile, in Europe, Facebook owner Meta Platforms has been slapped with a record $1.3 billion fine for failing to protect users’ personal information from the US security services. It has been told to stop transferring users’ data to the US. So how will this action by the European Union privacy regulator influence India’s plans to regulate big techs? 

Meta, meanwhile, has started the third and last round of layoffs. Several top Indian executives have also found their names in the list. Moving on, India’s largest insurance company, Life Insurance Corporation, had hit the bourses a year ago. But the stock proved to be a wealth destroyer for investors, crashing nearly 40% during the period. The management had to deal with the decline in the value of its investments in Adani group, along with higher tax rate on insurance premium above five lakh rupees. Going ahead, what does the road look like for LIC stock? Will it finally reward its investors or should you stay on the sidelines? 

From Dalal Street, let us shift focus to the corridors of the newly-built Parliament. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the building this Sunday, on May 28. He will also install a historic sceptre from Tamil Nadu next to the Lok Sabha Speaker’s seat. It is called Sengol. Listen to thjs episode of the podcast for answers.