TK Arun

TK Arun

TK Arun is a Senior Journalist and Columnist based in Delhi.

Preventing Democratic Backsliding Isn’t the Same as Securing Democracy

The INDIA bloc’s ability to rein in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vaulting ambition to godhood does not extend to addressing a vast democracy deficit

In an interim assessment of the election results, I made six points:

One, India’s next government would be a coalition government.

Two, Indian democracy has become stronger with the emergence of a strong Opposition, and a clear verdict that the people do not appreciate the politics of hatred and division, peddled aggressively by Prime Minister Modi.

Three, the Congress has halted its steady decline, which had persuaded several of its aspiring leaders and spokespersons to defect to the BJP.

Consumer Dilemma: Facing High Tariffs or Rising Temperatures

The political economy of power pricing discourages the utility to purchase high-cost power, even if that results in load shedding. Heat waves make load shedding unpopular. The alternative is to bite the bullet and raise tariffs

“Outrage over outages” — headlines like these strafe even the election-reinforced cocoon of citizen comfort in city after city, as unusually severe temperatures scorch India. At the same time, much of the installed gas-based generation capacity lies idle in the country. Blame the political economy. By aggressively pursuing the current strategy of adding ever more renewable energy capacity, without any complementary investment in storage, India will face ever-rising shortages of power, even as precious generation capacity lies idle.

Talk to Us