Supreme Court Raises Alarm Over States’ Free Electricity Push
The Supreme Court has questioned the Tamil Nadu government’s policy of providing free electricity to certain consumer groups, opening a wider debate about where welfare support ends and political freebie culture begins. The central concern in this dispute is how far governments can expand subsidies without putting public finances and long-term development under strain.
Ordinary Indians, More Than Business Elites, Sustain India’s Generosity
A new study estimates that India’s household giving totals about 540 billion (54,000 crore) rupees a year across cash, in-kind support and volunteering, with about 68% of surveyed households reporting some form of giving. Read alongside evidence of highly concentrated corporate and wealthy donor philanthropy, the findings indicate that India’s culture of generosity is sustained in large measure by widespread participation among ordinary households.
A New Treatment for Diabetes Brings Hope for India
A new class of medicines is quietly changing the way doctors treat type 2 diabetes. These drugs, called SGLT-2 inhibitors, are taken once a day as tablets. In the U.K., researchers have found that they lower the risk of early death by nearly a quarter compared to older diabetes drugs. For India, where diabetes affects over 100 million people and is often diagnosed late, this could make a serious difference, if doctors and policy makers move fast.
Why 300 Million Workers Plan to Strike Across India on Feb. 12
Central trade unions, supported by farmer groups, have organised a nationwide strike on February 12 involving over 300 million workers, who plan to disrupt key sectors including banking, transport and government services. The scale and composition of this mobilisation suggest a deepening conflict between policy direction and popular consent.
Parliament Cannot Question PM Cares Fund
The Prime Minister’s Office has said that questions about the PM Cares Fund cannot be asked in Parliament. This means that elected members of the Lok Sabha are not allowed to raise queries about how the fund is run or how the money is used.
Economic Survey: Despite Growth, Most Indians Live With Job Insecurity
The Economic Survey 2025-26, released on January 29, presents an economy that appears strong in headline numbers, yet several of its findings raise concern for everyday life, with direct effects on households through jobs, incomes, prices, security and access to public support.
What We Can Do to Resist Gig Worker Exploitation
Hundreds of thousands of gig workers across India logged out of the apps they work for, staging a coordinated strike to demand better wages, safety and dignity from their employers. But the focus now shifts to us, the customers. These platforms, like Swiggy, Zomato, Blinkit and Amazon, operate because we use them. So what could we do, as consumers, to support the workers who bring us our food, groceries and parcels?
Biggest Ever Exit by Foreign Investors Hits Indian Markets, Here’s Why It Matters
Foreign investors pulled out a record 1.6 trillion rupees, or 18 billion dollars, from the Indian stock market in 2025, even though share prices kept rising, according to a report. This suggests that global investors see Indian stocks as overvalued and expect weaker profits ahead, which can reduce foreign capital, slow job growth, weaken the rupee and raise everyday prices.
Algorithms Now Decide Wages, Work, Punishment in India’s App Economy
A new study on gig workers employed through digital platforms has found that app-based companies are using algorithms to make decisions about pay, work assignments and punishment without offering any explanation or way to appeal. The system deprives workers of basic rights, treats them as disposable and creates conditions that must be called out as unjust and dangerous.
Cobrapost: Public-Funded Loan Firm Routed ₹100 Billion to Insiders Without Disclosure
An investigation by the journalism organisation Cobrapost has alleged that a large, publicly listed finance company, which gives out loans using money borrowed from banks, financial institutions and everyday investors, carried out transactions worth over 100 billion rupees (₹10,000 crore) that appear to benefit family members and senior executives, with many of these deals not properly disclosed as related-party transactions.
New Scheme Replacing NREGA Dismantles the Idea of Economic Rights
The Parliament has passed a new law called the Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), or VB–G RAM G, repealing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), which had legally assured rural Indians a right to employment for up to 100 days a year. The new law removes this guarantee, alters how wages are determined and shifts more financial responsibility to the states. The implications are significant for India’s federal structure, its poorest citizens and the very idea of economic rights.
India Adds Millionaires Amid Shrinking Wealth and Deepening Inequality, Report Says
India now has 917,000 US dollar millionaires, with 39,000 added in just one year, according to the UBS Global Wealth Report 2025. This rise in high-net-worth individuals has occurred alongside a fall in average adult wealth, marking a sharp divide between visible gains at the top and economic stagnation across the broader population.
50% of Indians Earn 15% of National Income: World Inequality Report
Half of India’s population earns just 15 percent of the country’s total income, according to new findings from the World Inequality Report 2026. The top 10 percent, by contrast, take home nearly 58 percent of all income.
Why the IMF Gave India a Low Score on Economic Data Quality
In its 2025 Data Adequacy Assessment, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) gave India a ‘C’ grade for the quality of its national accounts and government finance data. In plain terms, that means the data has enough problems to make economic analysis tricky and sometimes unreliable.