Opinion | Schadenfreude and spectre of COVID-19 second wave

In this article for The New Indian Express, Shankkar Aiyar writes about how India should remain cautious because of the looming second COVID-19 wave.

Excerpt below:

“The relaxation of lockdown may have been calibrated but public behaviour has been far from exemplary in terms of social distancing or mask wearing. Aggravating the culture of complacency and wilful neglect are interpretations of tangential theories — like the one doing the rounds in the WhatsApp universe on how poor living conditions render immunity from COVID-19. Fact is conditions didn’t grant immunity or prevent deaths among poor Blacks and Hispanics in the US.

Then there is the persistent intellectualisation of the construct of herd immunity. There is as yet no clear view on immunity — instances abound of those contracting the virus again even if some of those infected have been asymptomatic. The lifespan of the antibodies spawned post recovery is yet being assessed and studies show the durability of these depend on intensity, on existing conditions, age of those infected and unknowns.”

Read the full article here.

Note: This work was done by the author/s when they were a part of the IDFC Institute and is republished here with permission.

Opinion | Gold buying for investment purposes also makes it easier to reduce imports of actual bullion

India’s rising gold imports are increasingly driven by investment demand rather than traditional consumption. Niranjan Rajadhyaksha explores what this means for the rupee, foreign exchange reserves, and economic policy.

Industrial policy now has broad World Bank approval but the case for universal adoption remains unclear

The World Bank has endorsed the idea of industrial policy with some conditions, reversing its stance of the early 1990s. What its new paper doesn’t address, though, is what happens if every country goes for it.

Opinion | India’s widening current account deficit amid global uncertainty: At what point do alarm bells ring?

India’s current account deficit may touch slightly above $84 billion this year, raising concerns amid global uncertainty. But does it signal trouble yet—or just a phase of manageable external imbalance?