Based on the editorial section of the source, here is the reproduction of the article titled "Troubled finances":
Troubled finances
TN’s fiscal white paper, a candid appraisal
The White Paper on the public finances of Tamil Nadu for the period between FY22 and FY26 released by the new TVK-led government paints a picture of total disregard for fiscal prudence by the previous DMK government. Heavy spending and leakages in revenue collections have led to a consistently elevated revenue deficit and ballooning debt in the last five years.
The White Paper indicates that salvaging the fiscal situation would require a sharp correction in expenditure, besides expanding the tax net by plugging corruption and reining in wasteful expenditure. It is remarkable that India’s premier industrial State with a strong services presence should slip up in revenue collections even as other States like Karnataka have managed to bring revenue deficit below 1 per cent of GSDP in FY26 and are eyeing a surplus next year. Tamil Nadu has consistently recorded revenue deficit over 2 per cent of GSDP in the last five years.
The post-Covid buoyant growth has clearly not happened. This is largely due to the State’s total revenue receipts declining from 10 per cent of GSDP in FY22 to 8.42 per cent in FY26. Committed expenditure such as salaries, pensions and interest along with other statutory payments now account for over 70 per cent of revenue receipts, leaving little room for productive investment. Capital expenditure as percentage of GSDP has also been declining from 1.79 per cent in FY22 to 1.44 per cent in FY26. With the State borrowing more to meet its revenue deficit, the total debt stock has doubled over the last five years to ₹10 lakh crore. The interest on debt now accounts for 18 per cent of the total other productive spending. The ratio of interest payments to capital expenditure in FY26 stands at a high 1.63.
While the new government has done well to acknowledge the magnitude of the problem, it remains to be seen if it will attempt to set things right. It can start by assessing the fiscal impact of its numerous poll promises. These include a ₹1,000 monthly grant for female heads of families along with six free LPG cylinders and eight grams of gold, silk saree for brides, gold ring for grooms, monthly stipend for unemployed youth, farm loan waivers and interest-free higher education loans. It should drop those that are unproductive and show a more conscious effort to reduce annual borrowing.
Revenue reform holds the key. The State’s own tax revenue percentage including SGST, excise duty on fuel and excise and VAT on liquor have registered a decline as percentage of GSDP over the last five years. The tax net must be expanded to include the hitherto untaxed in manufacturing and services sector, including those under-reporting revenue. Leakage of tax in mining and minerals must be reined in too. While taxes on liquor in Tamil Nadu mopped up ₹11,836 crore in FY26, the potential was much higher and there were several multiples higher. Stamp duty collections do not correspond with registration of property, hinting to corruption. Hopefully, the new government will read the writing on the wall and more importantly set a saner financial course for the State.
As found in the "Other Voices" section on page 4 of the sources, here is the reproduction of the article:
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.
The Myth of Alan Greenspan as the 'Maestro'
Mr Greenspan, who turned 100 on Monday, was once hailed in the press as a great central banker who had the talent to ensure enough economic growth without inflation. That narrative began to show cracks and rot, not least to those who once admired him as Chairman of the Federal Reserve from 1987-2006.
The paradox of Greenspan is that his policies, intended to ensure stability, laid the seeds of the ‘Great Recession’. His successor, Ben Bernanke, had to replace the Great Fed with the Great Stabilizer, putting the Fed on a path of intervention. This became known as the ‘Greenspan Put’, where the Fed consistently lowered interest rates whenever the US economy grew in robust fashion.
Based on the "Letters to Editor" section on page 4 of the source, here is the reproduction of the letter titled "Exit Starmer":
Exit Starmer
A lot of political water has flowed since Keir Starmer took over as UK’s PM. With Rishi Sunak having become a memory together with Keir Starmer stepping down, the UK seems to be in a state of political flux once again. Keir Starmer’s exit raises the question whether this is merely a leadership crisis or a deeper structural crisis in British democracy.
Gregory Fernandes
As found in the "Other Voices" section on page 4 of the source, here is the reproduction of the article:
The National
Social media ban will set much-needed digital boundaries
Social media has its uses. When it comes to those often carefree years of childhood and early adolescence, young people who transition into adulthood can make time pass over more swiftly. Growing up in the 21st century has become a fraught experience for children and their parents. Concerns regarding the impact of social media combine in almost a ‘superstorm’ of risk for children.
For years, society has ignored the harm that social media platforms cause at a breakneck speed. At a time when digital platforms have become deeply embedded in our daily lives and childhood has been stolen by the blinking of minute phone, the UK is looking to action some much-needed boundaries. A UK Cabinet resolution marks an important moment for child protection.
Based on the source material found on page 5, here is the reproduction of the article titled "Rural digital push":
Rural digital push
Boost digital literacy for farm schemes to succeed
Sandipan Baksi, Sai Chandan Kottu, Tapas S Modak
In the last Union budget, a ‘digital literacy’ tool was launched in February, with a budgetary allocation of ₹1,450 crore, to ensure that rural Indians are able to access farm-based schemes. But the success of this initiative depends on access to digital infrastructure and digital literacy. We use unit-level data from the recently released Comprehensive Modular Survey (CMS) by the National Statistical Office (NSO) in 2022-23 to examine the reach of digital infrastructure and digital literacy in rural India across social groups and gender.
While there has been a rapid growth in digital infrastructure in rural India in the last two decades, it is still marked by sharp differences. Per the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, in July 2025, Kerala and Himachal Pradesh achieved a rural mobile teledensity (defined as number of phone connections per 100 population) of more than 100. Tele-density was less than 50 in Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh.
We found that 31 per cent of rural households reported access to the internet, but only 8 per cent had a laptop/tablet connection. Secondly, while 31 per cent of the rural population had access to a smartphone and had internet access, only 37 per cent of men had access to a smartphone and internet. Further, ownership of smartphones and internet access varied across social groups.
Only 17 per cent of rural households reported usage of ICT for informational purposes. Rural households reported ability to use the internet for various purposes; rural households could use internet for social media, entertainment and digital payments. This reveals a gap between access and usage. More than 80 per cent of the rural adult population had used an internet facility in the 12 months from the date of the survey, but about 54 per cent were unable to use the internet for informational purposes.
The survey also explored levels of digital literacy across various tools. Only 55 per cent of rural adults with access to smartphones/internet could send messages with an attachment, a basic tool for information. Only 40 per cent of rural adults with access to smartphones were able to execute online transactions.
WAY FORWARD The CMS data clearly shows that though access to smartphones and the internet has risen sharply, significant sections of the rural population including women and persons from marginalised social groups have limited access to the digital world. Kerala was the first State to recognise access to internet as a basic right in 2019, and in 2025, the State reported universal digital literacy. This was accompanied by public investment of ₹1,540 crore to set up the Kerala Fibre Optic Network (KFON), to improve the infrastructure for fibre optic network and ensure universal and equitable access to the internet.
The Central initiatives have a long way to go. Though the Digital Bharat Nidhi has mopped up Rs. 1,27,338 crore via the fees for been collected through the Universal Access Levy (UAL), only half of this amount has been disbursed. In a similar vein, the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA), launched in 2017 to improve digital literacy in rural areas, was discontinued in March 2023.
There is an urgent need to prioritise investments in digital infrastructure and the development of digital skills, particularly among women and disadvantaged social groups in rural areas. This is a foundational requirement to harness the productive potential of digital agriculture — in terms of accessing schemes and market sustainability. The Centre must take the lead in ensuring equitable access to digital infrastructure, and digital literacy. Even more so because private investment is unlikely to fill these deficits in rural and remote areas (particularly broadband network).
Baksi is Associate Professor, and Kottu and Modak are Research Founders at the Foundation for Agrarian Studies.
Based on page 5 of the source material, here is the reproduction of the article titled "Need for a resilient power grid":
Need for a resilient power grid
A high-level Power Ministry panel has stressed grid stability in the backdrop of growing renewable power generation
CAPITAL IDEAS. RICHA MISHRA
Building a clean, reliable, flexible, secure, and resilient grid is an urgent national priority that policy makers cannot put off . Earlier this month, the Consultative Committee for the Power Ministry met with a focus on “Grid Stability” . Grid stability now has become more important because the country has witnessed a massive, rapid influx of intermittent renewable energy that the current grid was not designed for .
India’s power transmission infrastructure was not built to handle this . Besides, the mushrooming of data centres and semiconductor industry require a stable grid . The Committee deliberated upon the requirement of grid stability in the context of volatility in electricity demand, large scale renewable energy integration and increasing share of distributed generation resources and bulk loads .
With India surpassing 500 GW of capacity from non-fossil fuel-based sources, the challenge now is managing the intermittency inherent in renewable sources like Solar . Deploying Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) is now non-negotiable to absorb this surge, particularly because most Independent Power Producers (IPPs) are exposed to market volatility . However, the framework must address a clear bankruptcy capability code .
ENERGY SECURITY
In fact, the Committee had also noted that grid stability was central to energy security and crucial to India’s clean energy transition . The measures taken so far include resource adequacy planning, ancillary services, energy storage promotion, deployment of STATCOMs and synchronous condensers, PMU-based monitoring, black-start mock drills, and regular testing of technical standards, but experts feel they may not be enough .
The Committee noted the industry-wide recognition of grid stability challenges, specifically the mismatch between variable demand, shifting energy mix, and inadequate expansion of transmission and distribution infrastructure . The renewable energy shift will lead to surplus power in the country, and inadequate transmission capacity poses problems for grid stability and backing down of thermal power .
IPPs favour international BESS technologies due to a significant efficiency gap as global suppliers offer a choice of mid-GW operational data for long duration systems . Critics argue that since BESS enjoy must-run status, order to purchase this power under PPAs is forced, and at times, intermittency is being backed down . At the same time, distribution utilities have been forced to purchase power in the market and through exchanges to meet peak deficit due to imbalance between demand curve and power mix . Unless there is adequate demand, surplus power cannot be supplied and the grid is not supposed to be backed down .
At the Committee meeting, issues such as avoiding mismatch between commissioning of transmission lines and RE generation projects to avoid curtailment were discussed . Other topics included: promoting pumped storage projects for long duration storage to ensure resource adequacy and provide mental support; encouraging large bulk consumers closer to large generation hubs; and periodic technical transmission investment planning and deployment of equipment such as STATCOMs and synchronous condensers for voltage stability and system strength support .
Besides these, establishing suitable regulatory and commercial mechanisms to harness services from renewable energy sources and storage systems; periodic and timely review of technical standards for new technologies such as battery energy storage systems, smart grid forming inverters, electrolysis and data centre loads; and strengthening compliance monitoring through periodic self-audit and compliance reporting by grid-connected entities, were also deliberated .
Enhancing grid resilience through weather-proof transmission and distribution infrastructure in weather-prone corridors, maintaining emergency restoration systems and augmenting back-start capability for faster restoration of the grid; and a suitable framework for power quality monitoring and assessment in view of increasing penetration of inverter-based resources, were also suggested .
THE CHALLENGES
Mr Vungarala Ram, an independent expert in RE project development in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, recently said that during target and timelines for addition of RE generation capacities and issuing directives to States for implementation of Must-Run/Purchase Obligation, the need for storage solutions is currently not matching demand curve and power mix, leading to posing problems to grid stability .
If the transmission capacity is less than 500 GW, it will lead to volatility in frequency and need for curtailing supply from renewable sources . With 250 GW peak being met and 500 GW not far, managing a stable grid is viable for now . But the real stress test will begin in the next 1-2 years because solar and wind don’t behave like coal .
While India is prepared in aspects like operation control and real time monitoring of power, from several other aspects, where it is lagging is in handling the Duck Curve gap, which is the widening of daily supply-and-demand mismatch that happens in electricity grids with high levels of solar power .
There are transmission bottlenecks and State level readiness concerns . The need is for a realistic estimate of demand growth, availability of power under PPAs, and ensuring equity between utilities for fluctuating demand and power mix . Only when the Duck Curve gap is aligned will there be grid stability .
As found on page 6 of the sources, here is the reproduction of the article:
SEBI proposes common advertising code for regulated entities
Our Bureau Mumbai
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Tuesday proposed a common Advertisement Code for all regulated entities, seeking to replace existing specific advertising frameworks . The move is aimed at reducing compliance burdens while strengthening investor protection .
The proposed code will apply to stock brokers, depository participants, investment advisers, research analysts, portfolio managers and mutual funds among others . The detailed draft has been put out for public comments till July 14 .
REPORTING SHIFT
The regulator has proposed to replace the existing requirement of prior approval for advertisements with a post-issuance reporting mechanism . Regulated entities would have to submit reports on advertising within 24 hours of publication instead of obtaining approval from SEBI .
“In this digital era, regulated entities publish dozens of advertisements across social media and promotional content pieces daily. Subjecting each them to prior approval is neither efficient nor effective,” the regulator said, explaining the logic for July 1 .
The regulator said the proposal seeks to strike a balance between a unified, technology-enabled advertisement framework that balances ease of doing business with investor protection . Another aim is to replace all existing entity-specific and activity-specific advertisement codes with a single Common Advertisement Code (CAC), harmonising framework across all segments .
RATINGS DISCLOSURE
SEBI also proposes allowing regulated entities to advertise ratings and rankings assigned by a Credit Rating Agency (CRA) or Portfolio Manager (PMS), subject to prescribed conditions such as disclosure . The move is intended to enable investors to communicate legitimate distinctions and performance efficiency while ensuring adequate safeguards against misleading claims . Furthermore, the proposal seeks to move ubiquity, the regulator said, by streamlining the definition of “advertisement” to clearly distinguish between communications routine or mundane or informative and promotional communications . It has also proposed including performance-related situations that would not be treated as advertisement .
In addition, SEBI has proposed the development of a central advertising reporting portal by recognised supervisory bodies for automated reporting . The portal would enhance monitoring, operational efficiencies for entities and enable various multiple supervisory bodies to monitor compliance .
SEBI has also proposed allowing celebrity endorsements for regulated entities, subject to prescribed conditions . Celebrity endorsements would not be allowed for products or services that involve high risk .
The regulator said the proposal aims to create a unified, technology-enabled advertisement framework that balances ease of doing business with investor protection .
Based on the provided sources, the specific causes of the "12-year wage-debt squeeze" are not detailed in full. The source only contains a brief summary of an article by Deepanshu Mohan and Srisoniya Rajendran published on businessline.in.
According to this summary, the squeeze is characterized by mounting economic stress among the working class, which is currently being disguised by robust headline GDP and corporate profit numbers. The summary suggests a significant disconnect between high-level economic indicators and the actual financial well-being of workers, but it does not list the underlying structural or policy-driven causes within the text provided.
Based on page 8 of the source material, here is the reproduction of the article titled "El Nino could weigh on sugarcane production":
El Nino could weigh on sugarcane production
Our Bureau New Delhi
A developing drought bearing El Nino weather pattern could pose a significant risk for the sugar sector, with industry experts warning that a weak monsoon could impact sugarcane yields and recovery rates .
GK Sood, Advisor, All India Sugar Trade Association, said that reservoir levels in Maharashtra and Karnataka for sugarcane cultivation are broadly similar to 2024, while Karnataka has improved marginally compared to 2024 . In the recent past, the two States account for nearly half of India’s sugarcane area . Uttar Pradesh, on the other hand, is in a better position than two years ago, providing sufficient water for irrigation despite some rain deficit in parts of the State, he said .
Commenting on the outlook for sugarcane, Sood said total production in 2026 may be in the range of 400-420 million tonnes, compared with 433 million tonnes last year . If the monsoon fails to perform across central and south India during the crucial July-August period, the output could fall to around 390 million tonnes .
EARLY INDICATIONS
“Looking at this year’s sugar balance sheet, even 20 million tonnes production this year may be better than we thought,” said a senior official with a sugar company . “If the El Nino, and the Indian Ocean Dipole factors remain, we are headed for a serious problem” .
GP Sharma, President (Meteorology and Climate) of Skymet, said while weather agencies typically predict a summer El Nino, Skymet said it could drag to 390 m tonnes . Weather agencies typically list July-August-September as the key months, meaning the current dry episode could persist after the Northern Hemisphere summer . However, those four months are the peak period for India’s monsoon .
“A developing El Nino is also not a very safe period, which we consider, but then it could persist into next year,” said Sharma .
Shweta Saini, founder and CEO of Arcus Policy Research, said the government’s caution was well-founded . “The government is very cautious because India has to transition to a more climate resilient agriculture with assured irrigation coverage for staples . Sugarcane, which consumes about 55 per cent to 70 per cent of India’s gross cropped area, needs to be looked at . Now that, farmers are being incentivised to move from sugarcane to other crops, but food security challenges remain . Sugar exports are unlikely to happen this year and next year too . The sugar sector is facing a tough time as several multiples higher” .
Saini said the 2026 production could drop even further if the El Nino triggered a dry spell during the long period average .
As found on page 7 of the sources, here is the reproduction of the article:
Rupee caught between softer crude and stronger dollar
Akhil Nallamuthu Chennai
The rupee weakened marginally over the past week, losing about 10 paise against the dollar, to close at 93.74 against 93.64 a week ago. Despite the decline, the local currency continues to trade well above the record low of 95.85 touched in May.
However, the rupee has not been able to capitalise on some positive developments because of the mighty dollar. The greenback has found support from firm US economic data and hawkish Fed comments that could keep interest rates elevated for longer.
Lower crude prices are positive for India as they ease pressure on the trade balance, inflation and the rupee.
Markets are also closely watching the US trade tensions. The US top trade negotiator is set to visit India this week as the two countries work towards an important trade pact. A successful visit could provide a big fillip to the rupee.
Foreign flows have also improved. Per NSDL data, net FPI inflows stood at about $2.2 billion over the past week. Consequently, net outflows for June so far have reduced to about $1.7 billion, indicating that overseas investors are coming back to Indian markets.
On the downside, 95 is likely to act as an important support.
