Do it yourself

In a December 2025  commentary , economist Kenneth Rogoff argues that the rising tide of anti-immigration sentiment in many wealthy countries isn’t just a political squabble: it’s an economic self-inflicted wound. Rogoff notes that many advanced economies are confronting aging populations, shrinking workforces, and chronic labour-shortages. Yet political pressure is pushing in exactly the opposite direction: tougher restrictions on migration. He warns that by “shutting the door on immigrants,” nations undermine their ability to adapt to rapid technological change, maintain innovation, and sustain long-term growth. In effect, restricting immigration at this moment equates to taxing the future — a decision that may feel popular, but that carries serious costs in competitiveness, productivity, and payoffs from technological adoption. Recently  Elon Musk also echoed similar sentiments . At its core, his message: demographics aren’t optional — if labour supply and talent mobility d...

Hon’ble Prime Minister I write to you with a deep sense of disappointment, urgency and hope. While the matter may appear trivial at first glance, the incident carries wider implications for governance, civic responsibility and the trust of our youth in Indian institutions. I therefore request your kind attention and necessary directions to concerned ministries and agencies. Background The Common Admission Test (CAT), conducted this year by IIM Kozhikode, is one of India’s most prestigious entrance examinations. Last Sunday, I accompanied my daughter to her designated test center in North Delhi (Indraprastha Public School, Rajeev Nagar, Begumpur – 110086). The center was located inside a narrow by-lane of a regularized unauthorized colony, with examinees—many of whom had travelled over 50 km—reporting as early as 7:30 AM for the 8:30–10:30 AM session. More than 500 aspirants appeared, spanning diverse socio-economic backgrounds. The accompanying parents included professionals, teachers,...

 My dilemma this morning is whether I should be concerned about the internal politics of the United States of America, as most of my colleagues and financial market participants appear to be! In past 20yrs, we have seen George Bush Jr. (Republican, 8yrs), Barak Obama (Democrat, 8yrs) and Donald Trump (Republican, 4yrs) as presidents of United States. In these 20years, India witnessed Atal Bihari Vajpayee (NDA, 3.5yrs), Manmohan Singh (UPA, 10yrs) and Narendra Modi (BJP, 6.5yrs) as India’s prime minister. Evidently, a Socialist India (UPA) has lived well with Republican US (Bush); and a free economy supporter India (BJP) has lived well with Democrat (Obama) US. In past two decades, we have achieved progress in our civil nuclear program and we have been able to materially enhance our relationship with key US allies like Japan, Australia, UAE, Saudi Arab, and France; while maintain our strong relationship with Russia and Iran. The relationship with China has been volatile all throug...