Arun Kumar

Arun Kumar

Arun Kumar, Malcolm S Adiseshiah Chair Professor, Institute of Social Sciences, New Delhi and author of ‘Indian Economy’s Greatest Crisis: Impact of the Coronavirus and the Road Ahead‘.
  • Articles: 0

GST Cuts and the Illusion of Relief Amidst Global Tariffs

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The recent Goods and Services Tax (GST) rate cuts in India have come against the backdrop of U.S. President Donald Trump's penal tariffs. On August 7, Trump signed an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on certain Indian goods so that these exports would now face at least 50% tariffs, compared to 30% on Chinese exports and 19% on Bangladeshi exports. Naturally, India's competitors stand to benefit, while Indian exports would decline sharply.

From Haryana to India: How Police Corruption Feeds Illegality

From Haryana to India: How Police Corruption Feeds Illegality

The Director General of Police (DGP) of Haryana, O.P. Singh, has implored police officers to be citizen-friendly. He has said they should never harass people. It is quite an admission of what is wrong with policing in India. It implies that the police have become a law unto themselves and act illegally. That is why a DGP has to plead with his force to act like the police should.

Decoding India’s Q2 GDP: Growth Drivers and Data Integrity

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The Gross Domestic Product or GDP growth rate for quarter two of 2025-2026 has come at a whopping 8.2% – which is a six-quarter high – much faster than experts expected. The Reserve Bank of India had also expected a growth rate of 7%. This is surprising because the expected GST reduction impacted production and consumption of various items in August-September. The demand boost came after September 22 – which left just a week before the close of Q2. Reports have come in of many investment projects being withdrawn or curtailed and of net FDI becoming negative. These are not the signs of a robust economy.

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