Category: infrastructure
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A Surge Is a Window, Not SovereigntyCapital goods and machinery
A busy factory can create a dangerous sense of security. Machines are running, order books are filling and expansion suddenly looks sensible. Yet a country can produce more equipment without gaining much control over the technology inside it. India’s capital-goods opportunity lies in what manufacturers do with the present demand:…
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The Economy Above Our Heads
For most of human history, space was something people looked at. Today, it is something economies depend on. The change has happened so quietly that most people hardly notice it. A farmer checking rainfall, a truck finding its destination, an aircraft navigating across continents, a bank recording the exact time…
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The Corridor Economy: When Geography Becomes Economic Infrastructure
For several decades, globalisation encouraged us to imagine that geography was becoming less important. Containers reduced transport costs, digital communication compressed distance, multinational firms spread production across continents, and trade agreements lowered borders. The dominant idea was simple: capital would go where costs were lowest and goods would move wherever…
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The AI Investment Boom May Create the Next Great Global Divide
Artificial intelligence is usually discussed as a technology revolution. It may be more useful to see it as the beginning of a new economic geography. The factories of the industrial age were built around coal, steel, ports and railways. The digital economy grew around software, telecommunications and the internet. The…
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When Geography Returns to Globalisation
When Geography Returns to Globalisation For almost three decades, globalisation created the impression that geography was becoming less important. Goods could be designed in America, manufactured in Asia, assembled somewhere else and sold across the world. Containerisation, large ports, cheap shipping and digital supply-chain systems made distance appear manageable. The…
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Cities Are Building the Economy but Running on Empty
The Fastest Growing Part of India Is Also the Weakest Funded The future of India’s economy will not be decided only in Parliament or state capitals. It will be decided on the streets of its cities. Every new factory, startup, shopping centre, logistics hub, university and technology park depends on…
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The Invisible Foundation of Artificial Intelligence
Whenever people talk about artificial intelligence, the conversation usually revolves around powerful computers, advanced software, billions of dollars in investment, and competition between nations. Yet almost nobody talks about the land beneath these technologies. Every data centre, electricity corridor, transmission line, cooling system, and communication network occupies physical space. AI…
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The Urban Infrastructure Deficit: When Cities Grow Faster Than Their Foundations
India often celebrates the rise of its cities. From Mumbai to Bengaluru, from Delhi to Hyderabad, urban centres have become the engines of economic growth. They generate a large share of national income, attract investment, create jobs, and shape the aspirations of millions. Yet beneath the shining skylines and expanding…
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The Mirage of Mega Dreams: Saudi Arabia’s The Line and the Rise of Failure Infrastructure
The twenty first century has become an age of spectacle infrastructure where nations increasingly attempt to build monuments not only for economic growth but also for geopolitical branding, global visibility, and political legitimacy. In this race for futuristic symbolism, Saudi Arabia’s The Line emerged as perhaps the most dramatic urban…
