The political dust may have settled as West Bengal gears up for a new government, but the more profound questions are still to be settled. Elections offer the promise of renewal; governance must deliver it. For a state with such an intellectual legacy and political significance, the challenge is not winning elections, but turning stability into enduring gains in the well-being of its people.
India’s development narrative increasingly places women at the centre of an economic transformation. As Parliament prepares to operationalize the Women’s Reservation Act ahead of the 2029 elections, the focus on women’s participation in public life is intensifying. Over the past decade, policy efforts have expanded women’s access to bank accounts, jobs and...
In our earlier analyses of state finances (refer our earlier two pieces in ET; December 3, 2025 and January 15, 2026; as you find appropriate), drawing on the Comptroller and Auditor General of India reports over the past decade, we highlighted a troubling shift. India’s most populous states, accounting for nearly three fourths of the population, were gradually...
India's economic surveys, though strong, require reform to include cultural contexts and intra-household dynamics. Ignoring how social norms, kinship, and aspirations shape decisions leads to policy blind spots. Incorporating these measurable variables would provide a more accurate understanding of economic behavior, improving policy effectiveness and making data more truthful.
A study reveals step-ladder jumps and shifts in the durables that households in India purchase as they ascend income slabs. Conventional economic narratives often assume that consumption rises smoothly with income. As households earn more, they are expected to spend more—a linear and predictable relationship. Yet, empirical evidence...
