Social Media savior Or dystopia

If you get your news and views from Twitter or Google search, you correspond via Gmail or Slack, your files are stored on a cloud, your friends and associates are on LinkedIn, Facebook, Snapchat or Tumblr, your music on Spotify, iTunes or YouTube, your entertainment is from Amazon or Netflix, your date is from Tinder, […]

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CBDC: Minting the Future

Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), a new asset class and system for global and domestic payments and settlements, has been under active research and development since around 2015. Oddly, the United States (US) seems relaxed about joining the race. United States makes up for lost time Reflecting this institutional languor, Jerome Powell, Chair of the US […]

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Taming regulatory excess in retail

How should government balance the interests of retail sellers whilst protecting the interests of consumers? Even handed legislation and transparent, market-based rules to kindle higher investment and growth, better employment opportunities and higher tax collection from trade would be the long-winded answer. Political economy shoulders out technical common sense Sadly, legislation, in democracies, is strongly […]

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Tamil Nadu needs an economic reboot

Tamil is an ancient language which jostles Sanskrit on antiquity but remains in vibrant, modern use. It is also a cultural identity. Post-Independence, in 1947, the erstwhile Madras Presidency became the Madras State within the Union of India. In 1956, its borders were redrawn to shed the non-Tamil speaking peripheral areas of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, […]

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Feeding the beast- civil service training

Mission “Karamyogi”, the Modi governments first stab at public sector capacity development, was unveiled during the pandemic in September last year—a reminder that whilst the rest of us worked languidly from home, bureaucratic wheels continued to churn albeit with reduced physical presence. The name of the Mission derives from the Bhagawad Gita—a lively, ancient, masterclass on […]

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Through the social media looking glass

Social media — the use of online platforms, as substitutes for old style, high-touch, physical contact formats like newspapers and one-on-one meetings — is now near ubiquitous, boosted greatly by the pandemic. Follow the money The ebb and flow of advertising revenues best illustrates the media preferences of customers. Digital marketing accounted for more than […]

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