Shankkar Aiyar

Breathless in India: The price of inaction

India finds itself caught in the wake of exceptionalism and premature triumphalism.

25 Apr 2021

Covid-19: Epidemic of wilful blindness

Grief, anger, frustration and cynicism are colliding in personal and public space — and the convergence has left millions afraid and alone, fearful and lonesome.

18 Apr 2021

Nirav Modi Scam: The Stench of Sloth

S CAM! It is a perfect acronym for 'Swindler Carted Away Money'. Folklore has it that the phrase scam came into the urban lexicon after an FBI operation called ABSCAM to track and nail the nexus betwe

16 Apr 2021

COVID-19: Politics of not leading by example

The pictures and videos of the bulging unmasked crowds exemplify super spreader characteristics and spell what may follow.

11 Apr 2021

Unicorns & cricket lessons for politicos

The essential factor binding debutant cricketers and the unicorns is that they belong to the fraternity of the fearless, whether it is on the field of cricket or in the domain of tech innovation.

28 Mar 2021

The US-China Byte Dance: Can India Foxtrot?

A story from Hindu Puranas has salutary relevance for contemporary geopolitics. Bhasmasura, a demon, was an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva.

21 Mar 2021

VacciNation: Gaps vex rollout of the jab

On the face of it, India ranks third with 28.2 million or 282 lakh total doses administered.

14 Mar 2021

Minimum government: Commissions and omissions

The quest to restructure the Leviathan has flailed over decades.

07 Mar 2021

PSU privatisation: Why now and why it matters

The shift is driven by economic realities. Why privatisation matters now is embedded in the detailing of Budget 2021 documents.

28 Feb 2021

2021 State polls: The opposition’s identity crisis

The Opposition, in stark contrast, is in retreat floundering against the Modi-Shah juggernaut and struggling to preserve relevance.

21 Feb 2021

New world Order: Forget G20, Form G2Trillion

The much awaited signal event, the first conversation between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, came to be this Thursday.

14 Feb 2021

Budget 2021: Triggers and tripwires

Expectations have a defining influence on politics — just as they have on economics.

07 Feb 2021

Economic Survey: Will Budget fix what India ails from?

The Economic Survey preceding Budget 2021 is in many ways the annual essay on the state of the union.

31 Jan 2021

Opposition must compete, present ‘shadow’ budget

A shadow budget could enable parties to answer many questions and outline the approach to sectoral challenges.

24 Jan 2021

Mobocracy: Is it just in Trumpistan?

Ironically, the divisiveness, the pandering of partisan politics which catalysed its collapse is inspiring demagogues in democracies.  

10 Jan 2021

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