Shankar Nair

I write about past government interventions in the sphere of domestic energy use in light of the recent withdrawal of LPG subsidies and government boosterism of @IndianOilcl's solar cooker. 1/n thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/…

People say Keir Starmer has no vision for his party and the country, but he does, and follows through on it. That is the problem. newstatesman.com/politics/labou…

45 days in, India's #energy sector is seeing two broad trends. As the government directs gas, etc, to a handful of sectors, everyone else (Households, small firms...) are falling back on the informal economy. Here is why. carboncopy.info/weeks-into-the…

The Indian state has perfected making the poor wait. I write about ‘temporal citizenship,’ where full urban belonging requires ‘discretionary time,’ which is redistributed from the poor to the comfortable. Read my essay for @frontline_india to know more! frontline.thehindu.com/social-issues/…

Comrades in Retreat: How Kerala’s CPI(M) took a hammer to its ideology while chasing electability Nileena MS (@nileenams) reports: caravanmagazine.in/politics/keral…

Those with an interest in the history of economic warfare should check out Nick Lambert's 2021 book on how the Gallipoli operation was about restoring the global food through the Dardanelles, which carried one-third of the world's grain in 1913.

I reviewed Sowmiya Ashok's book, 'The Dig' for The Frontline frontline.thehindu.com/books/booksrev…

In November 2024, @project_polis and I started taking a closer look at India's plans to become a self-reliant weapons exporter. How this ambition has played out on the ground is alarming at multiple levels (from national security to militarisation within India). Do read.

This critique of Habermas by Raymond Geuss is just outstanding: thepointmag.com/2019/politics/…

Writing in the superb @Equatormag for the first time, I make the case that "maximum pressure" sanctions were always going to end in war because they systematically destroyed the distinction between civilian and military power in both Washington and Tehran. The piece is part of a round-up on the Iran war including great reflections from @NewLeftEViews, @DavidKlion, and Naghmeh Sohrabi. equator.org/articles/death…

Indian families face the prospect of an acute cooking gas shortage in the coming weeks, as war traps supplies of liquefied petroleum gas in the Persian Gulf, deepening an energy crisis already threatening to drive up inflation in India. bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

💡 Call for applications to our Hans Rausing scholarship is open until 17 April. Contact a prospective supervisor before applying to one of King's History programmes. 🛎️ First round of applications to the MAs closes 9 March! kingschostm.com/funding-opport… #histsci #histtech #histstm

In 2019, I started the @healthy_scept project, funded by the @wellcome, and including some favourite colleagues, especially @agnesjuliet and @AmazzoneFuriosa. Thanks to @HurstPublishers it's finally in book form and available for (discounted) preorder. waterstones.com/book/healthy-s…

India's gig economy will employ 23M by 2030. New labour codes promise some protection. But right now? Isolation by design. Sonic punishment. Precarious pay. No safety nets. Our convenience comes at their cost. Full story in @IndianExpress indianexpress.com/article/long-r…

We're attracted to simple big stories to explain complicate problems. In Scotland the idea of the energy transition is a key example. When oil and gas workplaces close down and workers lose their jobs we're told it's down to the transition. Except usually it isn't. Here's why🧵

Wrote on how a cartel style party competition upholds the country's managed democracy, from the lens of Bihar elections. And why Prashant Kishore is like the Frankenstein monster come to feast on a hollowed out ideologically disconnected politics. #goog_rewarded" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">telegraphindia.com/opinion/a-fami…

Trump is punishing India for buying Russian oil. But who in India is making the most money from Russian oil? Mukesh Ambani's Reliance. ft.com/content/c68335…

New on @dataforin: an exhaustive look at women in India's manufacturing sector by @nileena_suresh. Here's my favourite insight from it dataforindia.com/women-in-manuf…

Experts believe Dharavi will witness the largest urban exodus in process of its redevelopment. Why are the kumbhars and businesses in Compound 13 resisting surveys: lack of communication and uncertain future scroll.in/article/108378…

Why the world cannot quit coal on.ft.com/445g3m5

This is a staggering chart. Indian middle class wages have stagnated over the past decade while food prices have gone up. In my newsletter today ft.com/content/57bcc9…