New Delhi, Aug. 11 -- International trade volatility, especially the imposition of hefty tariffs by the US on Indian exports, has drawn attention back to economic reforms that would lower our cost base and help businesses compete in markets overseas. This must be done even as we decarbonize our economy-which draws energy costs into focus.

Both our main products of mass consumption, electricity and motor fuel, suffer from price distortions and subsidies that reflect state neglect of free market efficiency. In the case of electricity, energy-intensive industries resort to setting up captive capacity; this beats buying power from state-run utilities that overcharge them to cross-subsidize household consumers.

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