India First

Social impacts of technological advancements, and what governments could do about them Technology has transformed our lives irreversibly. Be it trains, automobiles, aeroplanes, computers and so much more, for much of the world’s population surviving without technology is literally unimaginable. The last few decades have made transformative technology available to large percentages of populations across the world. What were fascinating concepts a few decades ago have been commercialised and are available today, not necessarily expensively. Much as technologies that surround us amaze and delight us, creating desires and demands where none may have existed some years ago, several comforts offered by technology come at prices we are paying and will pay more individually and collectively as societies and nations. Ordering books online reduces the need for bookshops and their sales people, even as it creates a few new professions. Driverless car technology, once it becomes more rob

A Waste of Public Money, and More After the most recent assembly elections in India gave impressive wins for the Bharatiya Janata Party, it led to the unusual accusations by the usual suspects – that the electronic voting machines (EVMs) used in Uttar Pradesh and elsewhere had been tampered with by the ruling party to benefit them, or simply ensure their victory. Chief among those were politicians who were impacted the most. Mayawati was quick to call a press conference right after election results were declared, and accuse the central govt of having tampered with the EVMs. In Delhi, its Chief Minister, who’s political fortunes, after having soared impressively in the first two years of his entry in politics, have been in a downward spiral since he became the Chief Minister a second time, began his usual blame Modi rant, and sustained it for weeks. The accusations of these two characters, and many other insecure politicians, have literally no basis. No complaints have been