Solutions layer

What could actually move these problems

A curated set of interventions, each tied to the problems it acts on and graded by how much evidence stands behind it. A grade is a claim about evidence, not an endorsement — the rubric is published below and every entry carries its sources.

The grading rubric

Strong evidence: Replicated evaluations or large-scale rollouts show the effect. Disagreement is about design, not direction.
Mixed evidence: Real evidence exists on both sides, or results swing hard with implementation quality and context.
Thin evidence: Plausible mechanism, but little rigorous evaluation at Indian scale. Treat as a bet, not a finding.
Contested evidence: Serious people disagree about whether this helps at all. Listed because it is argued for seriously, not because it is endorsed.

Narrow the list

1. Which problem should it act on?

2. How strong is the evidence?

3. Who would have to act?

Showing 94 of 94 solutions

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The grading rubric

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Teaching at the right level for foundational literacy and numeracy

Case-flow management and judge capacity in district courts

Untied fiscal devolution to city and panchayat governments

Direct benefit transfers replacing in-kind and price subsidies

Transparent political finance with real-time disclosure

Mixed-member proportional representation

Single labour code with digital, presumptive compliance

Conclusive digital land titling

Police reform: separate investigation from law and order

Bus-first urban transit with dedicated lanes

Airshed-level air quality management

Farmer market access beyond the mandi

Primary health capacity over tertiary construction

Proactive disclosure and functioning information commissions

Non-advertising funding for public-interest journalism

Removing the specific barriers to women working

State capacity: specialist cadres and measured postings

Research funding and institutions that make staying rational

Fewer GST rates with faster refunds

Open digital public infrastructure with real grievance redress

Voluntary family planning access at the last mile

Planned secondary-city growth to spread migration pressure

Ranked-choice or run-off voting in single-member seats

Population-neutral delimitation formula

Fast-track courts for cases against sitting legislators

Enforced inner-party democracy for candidate selection

Functionaries, not just funds and functions, for local government

Splitting the district collector's magisterial and development roles

Genuinely independent anti-corruption ombudsmen

Open e-procurement with published beneficial ownership

Mandatory sunset and review clauses on new laws

Decriminalising minor regulatory and compliance offences

Mandatory impact assessment and public comment before bills

All-India Judicial Service to fill district court vacancies

Litigation policy to cut government-versus-government cases

Scaling mediation and Lok Adalats for routine civil disputes

Ring-fenced capital budget for district courts and e-filing

Incentive-based rather than coercive small-family norms

State-backed title guarantee for registered land

Land pooling instead of forced acquisition

Time-bound, single-window clearance for land and projects

Regulatory sandboxes for new business models

Dedicated commercial courts with strict timelines

Grandfathering against retrospective policy change

Property tax reassessment to widen the direct tax base

Visible service return tied to tax compliance

Taxing large agricultural incomes while protecting smallholders

Plug-and-play industrial clusters for mid-size manufacturers

Credit guarantees aimed at firms scaling past micro size

Employer-embedded apprenticeships at industrial scale

Portable, contributory social security for informal workers

Graduation-model support bundling assets, coaching and savings

Removing the size cliff that punishes firms for formalising

Micro-irrigation and water-use efficiency at scale

Satellite-triggered, village-level crop insurance payouts

Farmer producer organisations for input costs and direct sales

Unconditional cash transfers for the extreme poor

Workplace and community creches to free women's labour supply

Public job-matching and verified-skills platforms

Urban employment guarantee on the MGNREGA model

Municipal bonds and ring-fenced user charges for civic infrastructure

Performance-based road maintenance contracts

Mandatory source segregation and decentralized waste processing

Transit-oriented development zoning around metro corridors

In-situ slum redevelopment with tenure security

Directly elected mayors with fixed terms and executive powers

Business-process re-engineering before digitization

Domain specialist cadres in technical government departments

Quality-cum-cost procurement instead of pure lowest-bid

Battery storage paired with renewable auctions to smooth grid supply

City and state heat action plans with early warning systems

Particulate matter emissions trading scheme for industry

Linking public health insurance to strengthened primary care

Deliberate investment in secondary-city growth poles

Direct funding of gram panchayats for local infrastructure

Remove prior-sanction shields for prosecuting officials

Minimum fixed tenures for police and civil-service postings

Modern forensic labs and trained investigators for every district