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Explained Archive

Every Explained article we’ve published, in one place. Filter by category to revisit in-depth breakdowns of the policies, events, and ideas behind the headlines.

The NTA Crisis: Deconstructing the Failures of India's National Testing Agency

An examination of the structural, legal, and accountability deficits in India's primary testing body, exposed by the repeated cancellation and compromise of high-stakes national examinations.

Governance

Beyond Hormuz: Why India Must Urgently Secure Its Energy Lifelines

A recent conflict in West Asia has fundamentally altered the dynamics of the world’s most critical oil chokepoint. The implications for India’s energy security and the strategic imperatives ahead.

International Relations

Regulating Desire: The Public Health Case for Curbing Junk Food Advertising

As India grapples with a rising tide of non-communicable diseases, the focus is turning to the pervasive advertising of unhealthy foods and the legal and policy frameworks needed to protect public health, especially that of children.

Health

From Festival to Fever Pitch: The Transformation of India's Electoral Process

Once a localised celebration of democracy, Indian elections have evolved into high-stakes, professionally managed, and often divisive contests. An examination of the forces driving this change.

Polity

Beyond the Classroom: The Unseen Pressures on India's Teachers

While academic duties are well-known, Indian teachers navigate a complex web of administrative, systemic, and socio-political pressures that impact their professional lives and the quality of education.

Education

India's Green Power Paradox: Why the National Grid is the Biggest Hurdle to Our Cheapest Electricity

With solar and wind power costs plummeting, the focus shifts to the transmission infrastructure's inability to keep pace, creating a critical bottleneck for India's energy transition.

Economy

Beyond Off-the-Shelf: Reimagining India's Drone Strategy

As New Delhi commits $2 billion to domestic drone manufacturing, the challenge shifts from simply buying hardware to building agile partnerships that can keep pace with the rapid evolution of aerial warfare.

Security & Defence

The Graduate's Dilemma: Why India's Economy Struggles to Absorb its Educated Youth

An unprecedented expansion in higher education has met a structural slowdown in job creation, leaving millions of degree-holders underemployed. We explain the complex interplay of skills mismatch, capital-intensive growth, and the impact of automation.

Economy

Decoding NFHS-6: India's Persistent Malnutrition Challenge Amidst Health Gains

The latest National Family Health Survey shows significant improvements in healthcare access, such as institutional births and vaccinations. However, it also reveals a stagnation in child nutrition outcomes, pointing to deeper issues of diet quality, feeding practices, and gender inequality.

Health

Beyond Tariffs: How Non-Tariff Barriers Are Reshaping India's Global Trade Strategy

As global trade diplomacy moves from negotiating customs duties to harmonising complex regulations, India is recalibrating its approach to Free Trade Agreements and domestic industrial policy. We explain the shift, the challenges, and the new strategy.

International Relations