It’s very easy to form the view that the modern world is coming apart. We are constantly confronted with an onslaught of negativity: frightening headlines, alarming research findings, and miserable statistics.

There are indeed many things on the planet that we should be greatly concerned about. But fixating on horror stories means that we miss the bigger picture.

Inadequate and poor-quality power supply means frequent interruptions, poor voltage levels, and dissatisfied consumers across much of the country. Adding up all the losses in the system—including the losses due to energy dissipated in conductors, transformers and other equipment, along with pilferage by those who bypass meters, and losses from failure to recover the amount billed to consumers—India’s total energy losses came to 24% in 2015-16, significantly more than international norms.

Algumas políticas parecem tão altruístas que é quase impossível imaginar qualquer objecção a elas. Por exemplo, emprestar pequenas quantias de dinheiro ou anular dívidas para ajudar os mais pobres são medidas tidas como benéficas, e ambas as abordagens parecem inteiramente sensatas. No entanto, um escrutínio mais tento revela que essas políticas bem-intencionadas estão equivocadas.

Hace 46 años, el profesor Jørgen Randers fue coautor de “Limits to Growth”, y asustó a una generación haciéndole creer el mito de que el planeta estaba a punto de quedarse sin recursos.

A pesar de haber sido totalmente derrotado, el pronóstico del profesor Randers sigue siendo igual de sombrío, pero ahora lo que teme no es la contaminación, sino el cambio climático. Sostiene que “la democracia debe ser suspendida para resolver la crisis climática” y que solo una dictadura introducirá lo que cree que son las políticas correctas y costosas.

For the well-off in both rich and poor countries around the world, lives are enriched by plentiful access to energy that provides light, fresh food, and clean water, and that powers technology and allows the ability to control the temperature.

Early childhood programmes have long been shown to create improvements that last a lifetime. Whether by instilling good habits or by encouraging a passion for learning, early exposure to learning cuts drop-out rates in later schooling, and generates measurable improvements to the productivity and income of adults.

Em todas as culturas, ter um filho é considerado uma das coisas mais gratificantes que uma pessoa pode fazer na vida. No entanto, um coro de activistas, cientistas e jornalistas sugere que toda a gente deve pensar duas vezes antes de procriar.

A emissora pública de rádio dos Estados Unidos, a NPR, pergunta: "Deveríamos ter filhos na era das alterações climáticas?

Some policies seem so altruistic that it is almost impossible to imagine any objection to them. For example, lending small amounts of money or writing off debts to help the extreme poor are intended to help the most vulnerable, and both approaches seem entirely sensible. However, scrutiny reveals these well-intentioned policies to be misguided.

Access to electricity is critical for a modern economy, and a key driver of social and economic development. Lighting, health, education, productivity, labour participation, enterprise development and income generation, all improve when households are provided with access. In India, rural areas had electrification rates of 74% compared to 97% in urban areas in 2016.

Cities are, in many ways, the future of India. The number of metropolitan cities with a population higher than one million jumped from 35 in 2001 to 50 in 2011, and is expected to reach 87 by 2031. Today, 40 crore people call an Indian metropolis home. That will double by 2050. 

This swift growth places huge pressure on infrastructure. A March 2011 report by a high-powered expert committee chaired by Isher Judge Ahluwalia (goo.gl/r5ZLM3) found that the duration of water supply in Indian.