Mishik Sharma

Introduction: The Wrong Way to Think About Urbanisation Over the past few weeks, a series of seemingly unrelated developments have emerged across India's economy. Housing sales in India's top eight cities moderated during the first quarter of 2026. Logistics and warehousing activity continued expanding despite geopolitical uncertainty and supply-chain disruptions. Large investment commitments were announced in data centres, logistics infrastructure, office space, housing, and industrial facilities. Meanwhile, urban policy discussions continued to focus on traffic congestion, housing affordability, pollution, walkability, and declining quality of life in India's largest metropolitan regions. At first glance, these developments appear disconnected. They are not. They are all manifestations of the same underlying question: how should India physically organise its next phase of economic development? For decades, India has approached industrial policy, urban policy, housing poli...

Introduction: From Gas Supply to Gas Economy On 6 March, in the wake of Qatar halting its gas production and rising fears of a global LPG shortage, I argued that India's gas challenge is fundamentally a supply challenge. Faced with geopolitical disruptions, growing industrial demand, expanding urban gas networks, and ambitious energy-transition goals, India needs a diversified domestic gas-production strategy encompassing associated gas recovery, biogas, green hydrogen, coal-bed methane, underground coal gasification, and other emerging pathways. Yet production alone does not create an economy. Gas trapped underground has no economic value until it reaches consumers. Biogas produced from agricultural residue or animal waste remains a local curiosity unless it can reliably access markets. Future hydrogen production facilities will struggle to influence industrial development if the fuel cannot be moved efficiently to where it is needed. Between production and consumption lies a crit...

Uday Kotak's June 2, 2026 post on X was characteristically blunt. The veteran banker-entrepreneur pointed to Alphabet's decision to raise an additional $80 billion in fresh capital — despite sitting on $160 billion in annual profit, $62 billion in the last quarter alone, and a $4.5 trillion market capitalisation — and held it up as a mirror to India Inc. The contrast with the collective profits and market cap of all Indian listed companies was uncomfortable. His call: set aside the IPL distraction and get back to the "business of business." The post went viral quickly. Supporters praised the call for greater ambition and risk-taking. Critics pushed back, pointing to regulatory hurdles, tax uncertainties, high compliance costs, and a broader risk-averse culture in Indian business. The debate was healthy and timely. Yet, while Kotak's diagnosis of an ambition and execution gap (particularly in innovation intensity) is largely correct, the path forward demands more n...

In recent social media debate on Indian history, the Indus valley civilization has come into sharp focus. History enthusiasts from many countries are arguing whether the Indus valley civilization is a continuing one, and if so which nation or culture is its inheritor. Even if we leave aside the serious arguments, this debate actually reveals a recurring malaise: ancient-India-centric history discussion is disproportionately focussed on the Indus valley.  India's ancient history is not just about the Indus Valley. Its ancient history lies and lives in many river valleys across India. India’s relationship with its rivers runs deeper than geography. From the sacred waters of the Ganga to the life-giving Brahmaputra, India's many rivers have nurtured civilizations, inspired monasteries, shaped philosophies, and sustained communities for millenniums.  The problem is much of this rich riverine heritage remains fragmented—lost to erosion and flooding, confined to dusty museum display...

Introduction In his annual letter to shareholders, Mr. Gautam Adani positioned “Infrastructure + Intelligence” as the defining twin engines of the Adani Group’s future growth. He famously noted, “Before AI can think, energy must flow,” underscoring that reliable, large-scale power infrastructure is foundational to the AI era. On capacity, AdaniConneX aims to build a 2 GW data centre platform by 2030, as part of a larger $100 billion commitment to develop renewable-powered, hyperscale AI data centre capacity targeting 5 GW by 2035. This ambition is backed by the Group’s record FY26 financial performance and capital expenditure, including record renewable energy capacity expansion -- all aligned to support India’s emergence as an AI infrastructure powerhouse. This is the right direction. India will require enormous investments in renewable energy, transmission networks, and data centres if it hopes to emerge as a significant player in the global AI economy. Recent policy measures, includ...