Remittances have become an unusually large source of external finance for South Asia. But a development model in which workers migrate because domestic employment is inadequate, and then send income home to support domestic consumption, cannot indefinitely substitute for creating productive employment at home.

The larger opportunity before West Bengal is therefore not another round of infrastructure creation in isolation. It is the creation of an ecosystem in which infrastructure, private capital, local enterprise and skilled labour reinforce one another. 

The broader lesson for South Asia is equally important. Hilly regions cannot be developed simply by transferring lowland infrastructure models into mountainous terrain. Investment has to respond to local economic systems, geography and environmental risks. 

The regional opportunity is particularly significant in electricity. Nepal and Bhutan can potentially export hydropower; India can provide the scale of demand and investment required to create a regional electricity market; Bangladesh can become an important electricity consumer; and Sri Lanka and Pakistan can expand solar and wind. Greater…

The evidence indicates that the increase in state borrowing over the past decade is best understood as the outcome of a changing fiscal federal system rather than simply an expansion of welfare politics.

India could potentially become a bridge between regional economies and the wider Asian and Global South payment architecture. Greater interoperability could support remittances, tourism, trade and financial inclusion while reducing some transaction costs.

The current rise in Indian sugar prices is the result of several factors rather than ethanol alone. Lower-than-expected production—from an initial estimate of 343 LMT to about 306 LMT—is central to the supply concern. Weather damage, disease, festival demand, global prices and market speculation have added to the pressure.

South Asia remains one of the least integrated regions in the world despite geographical proximity and complementary economic structures. Greater regional trade, improved transport connectivity, cross-border electricity markets, digital payment systems and investment partnerships could substantially reduce external vulnerabilities. 

As South Asia seeks to become one of the principal engines of global growth in the twenty-first century, velocity may emerge as one of the most important indicators of economic vitality. The countries that prosper most will not necessarily be those that create the most money, but those that use it most effectively.

A just transition in India therefore requires targeted, context-specific strategies—supporting coal-dependent regions, strengthening reskilling and social protection (especially for informal workers), and aligning sectoral decarbonisation with employment generation. Ultimately, the transition’s success will depend not only on reducing emissions…