Electronics has become one of the most important sectors of the 21st century, powering industries from IT to consumer goods and energy transitions. For India and Vietnam, two of the fastest growing economies in Asia, electronics manufacturing is not just about exports but about higher income, jobs and global competitiveness.
Marketing a crucial milestone in India’s mission to transform its agricultural sector, the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister launched Agriculture Infrastructure Fund, a scheme launched in 2020-21 to strengthen post harvest and farm gate infrastructure. Agriculture Infrastructure Fund aims to boost farmer income through value addition and efficient logistics.
At the centre of the issue is the US goods trade deficit with China – $295.4 billion in 2024. President Donald Trump, in his 2016 election campaign, said China was “raping” the US. It needs to be noted that while China, Mexico, and Canada had massive trade surpluses with the US, the latter imposed tariffs on almost all countries.
India’s developmental journey over the past decade has brought into sharp focus the need for better coordination between central and state schemes. While numerous programs are launched at national and state levels, their actual impact ultimately depends on district administration and local governance. It was in recognition of this reality that the Ministry of Rural Development constituted the District Development Coordination and Monitoring Committee (DISHA) in June 2016 to ensure better coordination and effective implementation of central government schemes at the district level. They replaced the earlier District Vigilance and Monitoring Committee. The core purpose of DISHA is to bridge the institutional and administrative gaps that often emerge as flagship schemes travel from conception to implementation.
The RBI’s latest monetary policy and regulatory pronouncements are a strange mixture of caution and recklessness. The policy appreciates that with inflation depressed, not only because of well-behaved food prices but also because of deficient demand that has sent fast-moving consumer goods companies into depression, real interest rates in the economy are high.
Earlier this month, the Supreme Court ordered the government to set up a committee to evolve measures to help home buyers who find that the properties they have invested in are stuck in stalled construction, even as their builders go into insolvency.
The Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) is India’s flagship credit-linked subsidy scheme for promoting micro-enterprises in the non-farm sector.