Centre for Innovation in Public Policy

Sir Ratan Tata: What Endures Beyond a Lifetime! https://lnkd.in/gjxEFbKC the article as a podcast

#Data #sovereignity is important in the age of #AI #surveillance. An edit piece in Financial Express (India) newspaper. As global data surveillance gets coded into formal policy and law by some governments, India and other countries need a comprehensive shift in its approach to data governance . In our article, "Data Sovereignity in the Age of Global Surveillance," I and my CIPP colleague Dev Chandrasekhar highlight the critical need for India to take the lead and establish firm control over data ownership, protection frameworks, and infrastructure. With recent developments like the US's RISAA act, the privacy of Indian data on platforms such as AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure is at risk. India must go beyond data localization to ensure true data sovereignty, learning from global frameworks like the GDPR and exploring bilateral agreements like the UK-US Data Access Agreement. Investing in domestic infrastructure, including data centers and undersea cables, is pivotal to reducing dependence on foreign entities and securing India's digital future. The path to true digital autonomy requires a multi-pronged approach: building infrastructure, nurturing domestic platforms, and instilling transparency and accountability in data governance. link to the article in comments also https://lnkd.in/gvvAVjme #DigitalSovereignty #DataProtection #GlobalSurveillance #PrivacyRights #DigitalIndia #Cybersecurity

#sustainability, #profitability and #collapsing #cities The irony of this #presentation to the hotel and tourism industry was that I kept pointing out that Kathmandu and Nepal were heading toward collapse. In fact, I shared a slide showing #landslides and the loss of biodiversity in the mountains due to rapacious construction. The next day, there were massive landslides due to incessant rains, and more than 200 people died. Now, I would rather present solutions than problems, but sometimes even when the problem is facing you in the face you don't do anything. We have seen Indian cities like Shimla, Manali, and even Dehradun collapsing under tourism infrastructure. Hence there is many things to learn from #India's failure in managing the environment. The climate crisis is not a distant crisis it is happening right in front of us, our cities are collapsing. It is possible to create a #sustainable business that is more #profitable. It is possible to improve your #margins while doing good to your biosphere. It is not an either-or choice. I spoke to a bunch of #hotel owners and professionals about how to make a sustainable business. The general assumption is that if you make an office building or campus and follow sustainable principles for construction your cost goes up. This is a myth. Your total cost may not go up if you plan it. Your operating costs actually go down. In particular, the total energy costs go down by as much as one-fifth. This is why it is profitable to go sustainable. Moreover, your lifecycle costs also come down. Therefore, it has a long-term impact on your bottom line. The right combination of #technology, #material and #design can make all the difference.

On the road in Ahemdabad I have had a long relationship with #Ahmedabad city and its citizens and did some of my earliest political journalism there with HBL. My father got transferred from NSG to the Gujarat Police and set up the anti-terrorism school in Karai, so I was a frequent visitor to the city. My cousins still live in this city. But I came to the city after a long time, and it changes every time I see it. This time, the venue was #GujaratUniversity, and the subject was health. I have advocated much before #AyushmanBharat about the importance of #affordable #healthcare #policies. Hence, it was essential to be in a room full of doctors, academicians, and policymakers to push the challenges and opportunities affordable and accessible health care provides. It always surprises me that doctors remain the lowest-paid entry-level workers in India. The starting salary of a doctor with just a graduate degree could be as low as Rs 15,000. We are also witnessing a strange change in supply and demand dynamics among the trained doctors market. We will graduate more doctors in the next ten years than we have done over the last 50 years. The number of medical seats has increased dramatically across the country. This policy intervention pushed by the medical education lobby will drive salaries down. Moreover, the rise of technology platforms is also disrupting the expertise of doctors. A perfect storm is brewing in this space, but few policymakers are considering or taking action. Pushing the agenda on #affordable and #accessible #healthcare policies

What is #Independenceday for you? Is it a day to enjoy a holiday while away the day on the couch or enjoy the long weekend at an exotic locale? We are 1.4 billion people. We can either be very intelligent and cynical about our country or do something about it. We need to do something every day or every week, or every month for the country. Depending upon your time and inclination, we must do something not for ourselves but for the country. What do you do for your country? What do you think about India? What do you think we should be doing as a country? Don't wait for the #politicians or the powers to do it; you do it. Is the idea of India just linked with who is in power and who is not? That is #politics, and that is not the country. Being obsessed about politics, politicians, and power is not being concerned about your country. And it is not only the duty of those elected to do something about your country. Everyone must do something about their country. Don't crib, don't criticize, do something. However small or big it does not matter. It is the doing that matters. Happy Independence Day! Can you do something for your country?

#budget2024 Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has shifted the focus of the budget towards jobs. This is a significant shift; if this focus continues, it should be followed by a concentrated #policy design and #implementation. The only way to ensure that growth is inclusive is to create jobs at the base level. This is not always the priority for the private sector as #profits and #productivity demand automation at all levels, both in manufacturing and now due to AI in services. Therefore, a #mission approach is needed for jobs to make this implementation successful. An excellent beginning has been made with measures such as a one- month wage grant (up to ₹15,000) on a recruit’s first salary, internships offered at India’s top 500 companies, reimbursements of provident fund contributions, and other measures to increase women's participation in the workforce. These measures are expected to drive job creation substantially. The FM estimates that this will generate 50 lakh jobs; this may be an overestimation as it is still a tiny incentive and may not work at such a scale. But it is a beginning, and more needs to be done in a better design. The budget also aims to establish India as a leading startup nation. The most significant reform is the removal of the ‘#angel #tax.’ This #tax was levied in 2012 when Pranab Mukherjee was the Finance Minister during the UPA’s second tenure. Levying a new tax is easy, but removing a tax is very difficult; Indians are still paying taxes structurally inherited from the British during World War. Hence, when a government removes a #tax, it has been able to convince the bureaucracy about it. Angel tax was a particularly onerous tax as it was levied on startups for receiving funding from angels or the so-called seed investors in a #startup company. The tax was not on income but on investment, and it forced startups to pay a tax when they had no income and were still struggling to build a business. As we pointed out earlier the FM has taken several issues in the budget around virasat and jobs that @Center for innovation in public policy has been advocating for some time now. online link : https://lnkd.in/gqgxkmsH

#Budget2024 and CIPP The #budget has accepted many proposals that the Centre for Innovation in Public Policy has advocated for over the years. We are thankful to the #FM for her initiatives, but as they say, the Dil mange more as the country needs more. In the video below I have tried to dissect some crucial announcements in the budget for TICE. Especially regarding what the angel tax, public expenditure, and job-linked incentives will do for the sectors and economy. Do share your opinion and views about the #budget #initiatives

Go #deeper and be #better Why is listening to 963 hz important to going into a #meditative and #calm state that not only activates your pineal gland but also enables you to think deeply? Most of our thoughts emerge from stimuli like a conversation, video, email, or a demand from the boss. The more important #ideas are the ones that emerge from a #calmer and meditative mind. There is a process for generating such ideas. While a meditative state is certainly important for the mind to focus, sound can play an important role in this. That is why mantras are important: they work on evoking the sounds that still the mind. Gayatri mantra or chanting #OM does it. There is another way to manifest a meditative mind, and that is through #music at 963 Hz. 963 Hz - This frequency is often called the frequency of “God-consciousness.” It promotes spiritual awakening, higher consciousness, and a deeper connection with the divine. It is also associated with the pineal gland, which is believed to be the “third eye” in some spiritual traditions. 963 Hz frequency music can deepen meditation by promoting the emergence of #alpha and #theta #brainwaves. These are the brainwave frequencies associated with a deeply relaxed, reflective state achieved by only deep-meditating monks. The pineal gland, situated at the top of the head, is also called the crown chakra, a seat of consciousness by Yogis. It manages melatonin, encourages the absorption of serotonin, and prevents neurodegeneration. The pineal gland is responsible for producing melatonin, a hormone that regulates our sleep cycle and circadian rhythm.  If this piques your interest or helps you, do share it or comment on this post. I will then post more of my learning as a thread on this subject.