Our first editorial today welcomes the Union government’s decision to fast-track approvals to foreign direct investment (FDI) from China and other neighbouring land-border countries in 40 manufacturing sub-sectors within 60 days. It notes that the move reflects a growing recognition that India’s industrial ambitions require deeper integration with global supply chains, especially in areas such as rare-earth magnets, printed circuit boards, advanced battery components, display modules, machine tools and polysilicon wafers. However, the editorial warns that faster clearances alone will not solve India’s manufacturing challenge. Structural bottlenecks such as high logistics costs, skill shortages, rigid compliance systems, weak contract enforcement, land acquisition hurdles and high tariffs still need to be addressed through a coherent reform strategy.
Our second editorial argues that the Bharatiya Janata Party’s real test in West Bengal will be whether it can turn the state into an industrial and business powerhouse. The Trinamool Congress years saw genuine gains in poverty reduction and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), but heavy social-sector spending strained state finances, while limited capital formation weakened industrial growth. The Singur agitation, political violence, retrospective withdrawal of incentives and firms shifting registered offices out of the state hurt West Bengal’s business image. The editorial says large-scale manufacturing may remain difficult because of land constraints, but information technology (IT) offers a viable alternative. With high literacy, a decent quality of life, and the Bengal Silicon Valley Tech Hub as a base, the new government can build West Bengal into an upscale tech hub.
Ajay Shah argues that Indian firms need to reduce their traditional overdependence on the United States (US) and prioritise deeper engagement with Japan. The US remains the world’s largest economy, but declining institutional quality and growing unpredictability mean Indian businesses must diversify their global linkages. Shah notes that Japan has moved beyond the limitations of its state-led industrial model and built a more open, market-oriented and institutionally credible economy. Its strengths in automobiles, advanced materials, semiconductors, defence research and patient capital make it a valuable partner for India. He says the new Japan strategy should combine Japanese capital and advanced intellectual property with Indian scale, but this will require patience, trust, and a shift away from quick-fix business practices.
Sunita Narain writes that India can no longer ignore the growing conflict between farmers and wild animals. Crop destruction by wild boars, nilgai, monkeys, elephants and other animals is making farming increasingly unviable in several regions. She cites studies showing large annual losses in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh and parts of the Western Ghats, with many farmers reducing cropped areas or falling into debt. Narain notes that India has now included animal-related losses under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, but compensation systems remain weak and difficult to access. She argues that the response has been slow and confused, and warns that decisions such as restoring protection for the rhesus macaque could deepen conflict rather than help conservation or farmers.
Madison Malone Kircher reviews Megan Garber’s Screen People as a wide-ranging account of how digital platforms have turned everyday life into performance. Garber begins with February 26, 2015, the day of the viral dress debate and the televised llama chase, using it as a marker of a more fractured and screen-mediated internet era. The book argues that entertainment logic has seeped into daily behaviour, with people becoming both actors and audiences through social media, viral rituals and “main character energy”. Kircher finds Garber strongest when she shows how screens have altered ordinary acts such as typing, ordering or presenting oneself online. However, the review notes that the book sometimes lacks a clear narrative thread despite its sharp observations.
