Building back better

Wise policymaking is need of the hour

Rebuilding after the pandemic was never going to be an easy task. Restoring confidence within communities and companies, coaxing workers back to offices and repairing the economy all need to happen even as the world grapples with climate change and its effects on the planet. As Greta Thunberg, the Swedish climate activist, put it: The pandemic has “turned everything upside down”. Understanding how everything has changed is critical to getting it right.

For new entities, structures and relationships have occupied novel spaces that have emerged even as legions of companies, and communities, across India continue their struggles with covid-19. The boom in digital unicorns and the rush of investment into these companies is cause for celebration, yet these entities represent a mere sliver of the economy. While ensuring their continued growth is vital, policies and programmes to rebuild the entire economy in a healthier and more sustainable manner are the need of the hour.

Draft e-commerce rules unveiled some months ago are the focus of this month’s Cover story. Seen as India’s attempt to rein in Big Tech, the tweaking of the rules is also testament to the considerable political clout that the bricks-and-mortar retail lobby wields. While e-retailers including Amazon, Walmart’s Flipkart and Nykaa have created online platforms that have enabled the growth of many small and medium-sized companies, their progress has also thrown up challenges for offline retailers who have had to rethink, and even abandon, their ventures. It is important to recognise that both offline and online retailers should co-exist in the interest of consumers.