IMPRI Desk

IMPRI Desk

Industrial policy and Technological transformation: Assessing the Rajasthan Semiconductor Policy And the making of a regional semiconductor hub 2026

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On 18 March 2026, the Government of Rajasthan approved the Rajasthan Semiconductor Policy 2026, formally released as a policy document by the state government on 24 March 2026. The policy was introduced against the backdrop of India's broader semiconductor push under the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) and reflects a deliberate attempt by the state to move away from its traditional industrial base of textiles, mining, and handicrafts toward a technology-driven growth model aligned with the state government's "Viksit Rajasthan-2047" vision.

Bihar’s Fertility Rate and the Governance Gap: What Policy Is Missing

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Bihar holds a distinction that no state wants. Despite a decline from 3.4 in NFHS-4 (2015-16) to 3.0 in NFHS-5 (2019-21), Bihar still records the highest Total Fertility Rate among all major states in India. The national average has reached 2.0, the replacement level. All other medium and large states in India, those with a population above one crore, now have a TFR below the replacement level of 2.1. Bihar stands alone.

The Malabar Salinity Frontier: Policy Blind Spots in Non-Kuttanad Estuarine Agriculture

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Kerala's estuarine rice-farming systems are often associated with Kuttanad, the famous below-sea-level rice-growing region of Alappuzha and Kottayam. But in the coastal wetlands of northern Kerala, a similar and much less recognised farming system exists in the tidal wetlands of Kannur, Kasaragod and Kozhikode. Known as kaipad (or kaikandam), it is considered the Malabar counterpart of central Kerala's pokkali system. Farmers grow salt-tolerant paddy during the monsoon and traditionally use the same fields for shrimp and fish harvesting during the rest of the year.

Environment Protection (End-of-Life Vehicles) Rules, 2025: Evaluating India’s Framework for Sustainable Vehicle Recycling and Circular Economy

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India’s economic rise has been accompanied by an equally dramatic expansion in vehicle ownership. Rising incomes, urbanisation, logistics growth and improved mobility have together made India the world’s third-largest automobile market. The country now adds more than 20 million vehicles annually (NITI Aayog), making automobiles one of the most important drivers of industrial activity, employment and consumption.

National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG): Strengthening Data-Driven Judicial Governance under e-Courts Phase III

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The timely delivery of justice is central to the rule of law and effective governance. However, Indian courts have faced persistent challenges of case pendency, delays in disposal and limited access to consolidated judicial information. To address these gaps through technology, the Government introduced the e-Courts Mission Mode Project under the National e-Governance Plan. The National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) emerged during Phase II (2015–2023) as a central repository of information on cases in District, Subordinate and High Courts, providing data on institution, disposal and pendency through an online platform.

Scaling UPI: The Economics Behind NPCI’s New Operational Limits

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Although the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has been operational for a decade, it does not exhibit the obsolescence typical of legacy infrastructure; rather, it currently faces challenges associated with rapid and unprecedented scalability. NPCI launched it in April 2016 to make bank-to-bank transfers instant and interoperable, so a payment from any bank app could reach any other bank account without the usual friction. The decision that really made it explode came later: in January 2020, the government set UPI’s Merchant Discount Rate to zero, so neither payer nor payee would ever see a fee. That single choice is arguably why the neighbourhood vegetable seller and the metro-station tea stall started accepting UPI as readily as a large retail chain.

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