The Takshashila Institution’s Booklist You Can’t Afford to Miss!

The Takshashila Institution is an independent, non-partisan, and non-profit centre specialized in research and education in public policy, based in Bangalore, India. The institution stands out because it bridges expert knowledge and influential networks, producing independent policy research and fostering rich public discourse to strengthen India’s intellectual engagement.

Why do their book recommendations matter? Simply put, following Takshashila Institution’s book recommendations is important because they are curated by leading scholars and policy practitioners deeply engaged in India’s socio-economic and strategic challenges. 

Books authored by the Takshashila Institution faculty 

1. Missing In Action: Why You Should Care About Public Policy — Pranay Kotasthane & Raghu S. Jaitley (2023)
2. When the Chips Are Down: A Deep Dive into a Global Crisis — Pranay Kotasthane & Abhiram Manchi (2023)
3. We, The Citizens: Strengthening the Indian Republic — Khyati Pathak, Anupam Manur, Pranay Kotasthane (2024)
4. A Visible Hand: Essays on the Intersection of Economics, Politics, and Society — Anupam Manu

Book recommendations by the Takshashila Institution faculty

1. From Jugaad to Systematic Innovation: The Challenge for India  —  Rishikesha Krishnan
2. The Strategy Trap: India And Pakistan Under the Nuclear Shadow — Lt. Gen. Prakash Menon
3. If Then: How One Data Company Invented the Future — Jill Lepore
4. Demagogue: The Fight to Save Democracy from Its Worst Enemies — Michael Signer 
5. The Republic of Beliefs: A Radical Approach to Economics — Kaushik Basu
6. Mortal Republic: How Rome Fell into Tyranny — Edward J. Watts
7. The War That Ended Peace — Margaret MacMillan
8. Ideas: A History of Thought and Invention, from Fire to Freud — Peter Watson
9. Maxwell’s Demon: Why Warmth Disperses and Time Passes — Harvey S. Leff & Andrew F. Rex
10. They Made What? They Found What? by Shweta Taneja
11. Space. Life. Matter.: The Coming of Age of Indian Space Research — Various Authors 

Additional  Resource: Discussion Documents & Working Papers

• The Geopolitics of Indian Talent — Satya Sahu, Vanshika Saraf, Adya Madhavan, Rijesh Panicker & Arindam Goswami (2025)
• Recent Trends and Future Trajectories in Geo-Economics — Anisree Suresh, Arindam Goswami, and Rakshith Shetty (2025)
• The Techno-Economic Impact of the Israel-Hamas War — Aditya Ramanathan, Pranay Kotasthane, Sarthak Pradhan, and Satya Sahu (2024)
• A Framework for Governing Emerging Technologies — Bharath Reddy and Shambhavi Naik (2025)

Effective Capacity Building for Agri-institution Personnel: Tools and Techniques

The training titled "Effective Capacity Building for Agri-institution Personnel: Tools and Techniques," organized by MANAGE (National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management), was aimed at enhancing the competencies of agricultural extension personnel. Dr. Srinivasacharyulu Attaluri, Deputy Director (Knowledge Management) at MANAGE, is a key resource person involved in such capacity-building initiatives.

Brief: The agricultural landscape is undergoing rapid transformation due to the rise of agri-startups that introduce novel approaches for capacity building by Training Institutions while working with farmers in India. MANAGE, EEIs, SAMETIs, SAUs, ICAR Institutes, and KVKs all conduct capacity building, skill development, and technology transfer activities for extension personnel and farmers. They deliver similar content independently, leading to duplication and overlapping of the efforts too.

Book Recommendation: The recommended book, titled "What Every Extension Worker Should Know: Core Competency Handbook" is a comprehensive reference manual created by USAID, Michigan State University, and MEAS (Modernizing Extension and Advisory Services)

Learnings

Innovation requires interactions and information flows among a wide range of actors within the innovation systems through digital technologies. Skill development is a short-term effort focused on improving specific abilities at the individual level, while capacity building is broader and more comprehensive. Capacity building develops people, organizations, and systems for long-term success through skills, governance, partnerships, and resource management. 

Techniques for Capacity Building 

World Café: A participatory group process modeled on butterfly movement and pollination. Participants rotate between small-group tables, sharing and cross-pollinating ideas. This helps generate creative insights, collective intelligence, and actionable outcomes in extension training, simulating the natural pollination processes for spreading and enriching discussions

Visual Facilitation: Engagement strategy using diagrams, mind maps, and visual storytelling during training sessions to simplify complex ideas, promote group learning, and stimulate creative thinking

Design Thinking: Design thinking infuses extension training with creative problem-solving by focusing on user needs, rapid prototyping, and testing. It encourages innovative approaches to addressing farmer challenges, service delivery, and system improvement

Tools for Capacity Building 

1. New Extension Learning Kit - GFRAS

This toolkit contains digital resources and modules for agricultural extension workers. Topics include gender in advisory services, risk mitigation, climate adaptation, rural evaluation, youth mentoring, nutrition-sensitive extension, e-extension, and entrepreneurship. 

2. Micro-Learning / Mobile Learning

Micro-learning delivers short, focused lessons (typically 3–10 minutes) via mobile or digital platforms. These modules are easily accessible, often use videos, infographics, and quizzes, and allow for self-paced, on-demand learning. 

3. MOOCs (agMOOCs and NAARC)

MOOC platforms like agMOOCs by MANAGE and NAARC offer free, open, and flexible courses for lifelong agricultural education. 

4. iGOT KarmaYogi 

This government platform provides online training content and courses for extension professionals. The iGOT KarmaYogi platform is exclusively meant for government officials and civil servants. Access requires registration using an official government email ID or other credentials linked to government employment. 

5. National Skills Qualification Framework - ASCI

ASCI’s skills framework supports modular courses in dairy, fisheries, animal husbandry, farm modernization, and commodity management. ASCI e-Learning Zone is a gateway to agricultural skill development.

*Skill India Digital Hub (SIDH) portal offers a variety of free online courses and skill development programs across multiple sectors, including agriculture. 

6. Agri Games

Agri games offer interactive, gamified modules for learning agricultural concepts like nutrient management. They boost engagement and help users gain practical knowledge through play and simulation

7. Blended Learning – ICAR-IASRI

This platform centralizes digital learning resources, including LMS (Learning Management System), AR/VR studios, video conferencing, online assessments, interactive whiteboards, and learning courses. It aims to increase knowledge retention and learner engagement across agricultural universities.

8. ECHO Platform

The ECHO platform, originally designed for health extension, is indeed being adapted for agriculture and other sectors by integrating resource persons, resource materials, trainers, and creating analytics in a virtual learning environment. 

9.VR/AR-Based Learning

Virtual reality modules such as fish dissection, hydroponics, seed lifecycle, and irrigation are used for immersive, hands-on training at specialized experience centers. 

13 Game-Changing Personal Growth Books to Transform Your Life from The Seen and Unseen Podcast

"The Seen and the Unseen" is India's premier long-form podcast hosted by Amit Varma. The podcast, which has been running since 2017, features long-form conversations with intellectuals, writers, economists, historians, and thought leaders from India and around the world.

Amit Varma is a respected journalist and writer, a two-time winner of the Bastiat Prize for Journalism. The show is renowned for its rich intellectual content and the diversity of its guests, making it a valuable resource for anyone interested in public policy, history, culture, or economics in contemporary India. I am only sharing the books recommended related to Psychology  and personal growth: 

1. Four Thousand Weeks — Oliver Burkeman
2. Wanting — Luke Burgis
3. Start With Why — Simon Sinek
4. The Hard Thing About Hard Things — Ben Horowitz
5. Zero to One — Peter Thiel
6. Atomic Habits — James Clear
7. How to Know a Person — David Brooks
8. The Anxious Generation — Jonathan Haidt
9. Good to Great — Jim Collins
10. The Lean Startup — Eric Ries
11. The Goal — Eliyahu Goldratt
12. The Nurture Assumption — Judith Rich Harris
13. Waking Up: A New Operating System for Your Mind — Sam Harris

For readers seeking to dive deeper into the themes discussed on the podcast, the book recommendations serve as a comprehensive guide to engaging with the complex ideas Amit Varma and his guests explore.

AI Prompt Templates for Students

Are you looking for ways to get more out of AI tools like ChatGPT or Gemini, or Perplexity? Let us learn about prompt. A prompt is a written instruction or command that directs the AI to perform a task. Mega-prompts are great when you already have all the information on hand and need a direct output without much back-and-forth. Prompt chaining is useful for more complex tasks that may require clarifications, multiple revisions, or when you need to probe deeper into specific details.

Today, I will share a set of expertly crafted prompt templates designed for making your interactions more productive and your output sharper.  Try these prompts in your next AI query and watch your work improve with better clarity, deeper insights, and faster progress. 

Teaching and Breaking Down Concepts

1. Imagine you’ve spent 20 years mastering [industry/topic]. Explain its fundamentals to a complete beginner, using simple analogies, clear logic, and step‑by‑step breakdowns.
2. Teach me [skill/topic]—use metaphors, stories, and examples. Pause to quiz me so I can test my understanding.
3. Deconstruct [topic] into its essential principles. What must someone know first, and how do these ideas build upon each other?

Collaborative Thinking Partner

1. Act as my strategic thought partner. I’ll share [idea/problem], and I want you to challenge assumptions, uncover blind spots, and help me sharpen it into something far stronger.
2. Help me stress‑test this idea by asking tough questions, highlighting weaknesses, and pushing toward a 10x better version.

Context-Driven Tasks

1. Using [context], generate [output] about [topic] that achieves [goal].
2. From this [context], create a structured summary that highlights key points and their implications for [goal].
3. Break down [context] in plain, accessible language so that even a layperson can follow.

Deeper Analysis and Evaluation

1. Analyze [context] by dissecting its main parts and showing how they connect.
2. Evaluate how well [context] meets [criteria]. Weigh its strengths and weaknesses in this regard.
3. Compare [context A] with [context B]. Highlight core similarities, differences, and any surprising overlaps.
4. Blend features of [context A] into [context B] to achieve [goal].

Improvement and Composition

1. Suggest ways to strengthen [context] so that it better supports [goal].
2. Write a [type of content] that communicates [context] to [audience] in a clear and engaging [style].

Artifical Intelligence (AI) for Inclusive Societal Development - Viksit Bharat 2047

NITI Aayog on October 8 released a pioneering study, AI for Inclusive Societal Development. The roadmap proposes a national mission "Digital ShramSetu" that leverages AI and frontier technologies to overcome systemic barriers faced by informal workers and can be harnessed to transform the lives and livelihoods of India’s informal workers. The five key components of roadmap:

1. Develop a national blueprint
2. Coordinate fragmented stakeholders
3. Catalyse strategic partnerships
4. Translate innovation into impact
5. Provide policy and regulatory support

Ecosystem 

India has one of the largest informal economies in the world, with about 90% of the workforce employed under informal arrangements, contributing nearly half (around 45-50%) of the country's GDP having 490 million informal workers. The informal sector includes unregistered enterprises, self-employed workers, casual laborers, domestic workers, and informal service providers, often lacking social security benefits. India's e-Shram portal, launched in August 2021 to create a National Database of Unorganised Workers (NDUW), has registered over 30.98 crore unorganised workers as of August 2025.

Migration and urban informal work are intertwined, with informal jobs. The informal sector poses challenges like poor working conditions, job insecurity, and exploitation, especially for migrant workers. Indian MSMEs employing informal workers also suffer on a competitive scale is the quality of talent. Businesses compensate for inferior quality labour with depressed wages which in turn creates an unattractive career pathway; hinders upward mobility; and disincentivizes talent.

Additional Reading: Why do rural enterprises remain small ?

Challenges

1. Harassment of MSMEs by labour inspectors is a reported issue in India, reflecting concerns over misuse of power, frequent inspections, and arbitrary penalties. The complex regulatory environment and multiple overlapping laws cause delays and create opportunities for rent-seeking behaviors from officials.

2. Workers with limited digital literacy become more dependent on intermediaries (officials, cybercafe operators, CSC operators) who can extract rents. This will create new rent-seeking opportunities. Local officials could charge fees for "faster processing" of digital IDs or demand bribes

3.Bureaucrats resist change, preferring to maintain their power and scope. Incentives encourage expanding departments and budgets rather than achieving efficiency. The administrative state centralizes power among unelected officials. The same bureaucrats who struggle with existing schemes will be tasked with implementing AI-powered verifiable credentials and smart contracts. 

4. Drawing from James C. Scott’s work, the discussion delves into how increased state legibility—enabled by systems like Aadhaar and UPI— have enabled government to operate from 2009 to 2024 without Privacy Law. The 15-year gap since Aadhaar’s launch without a privacy framework underscores systemic neglect. India currently lacks a fully enacted constitutional act specifically dedicated to AI regulation akin to the European AI Act.

5. Even if there is motivation in the government at top tiers, there is not always capacity to understand complex technological systems by frontline user.  India's DPI success (UPI, Aadhaar) succeeded because they involved standardized, high-volume transactions with limited discretionary implementation. Digital ShramSetu requires complex, discretionary decision-making at the local level—exactly where Indian state capacity is weakest and most corrupt.

6. Like poverty status, the classification of workers as formal or informal is fluid. Workers may shift between informal and formal employment due to job transitions, gig economy roles, and contractual changes. This fluidity complicates policy design, social protection coverage, and statistical measurements, demanding adaptive, inclusive frameworks.

7. India's skill development ecosystem reveals a systematic corruption pattern that AI implementation could either amplify or mitigate, depending on design choices.

Suggestions

1. AI algorithms can be used to match registered workers with job opportunities in their skill areas and geographic locations, optimizing employment pathways and reducing informality and underemployment. This can be initiated from Polytechniques and ITIs in the initial phase and gradually used for unorganized workers.

2. e-Shram portal must provide AI-facilitated interoperability with other government benefits like UDYAM, e-Pension, post office and healthcare schemes can offer a seamless experience for workers, facilitating holistic social protection. 

3. When an informal worker registered on e-Shram secures formal sector employment, their verified credentials and employment history can be linked to EPF enrollment processes, helping with identity verification, tracking contributions, and ensuring portability of social security benefits.

4. The roadmap assumes informal workers want to transition to formal systems. Application of the technology must necessarily be accompanied by design of transparent processes.  AI can be used for self-certification, digitization of compliance to reduce physical inspections, and stronger grievance redressal mechanisms to protect MSMEs from excessive or unfair enforcement. This is important to create pathways for the informal worker to initiate the journey into an entrepreneur integrated into formal economy. 

5. Labour courts and dispute resolution mechanisms are increasingly exploring the use of AI to improve efficiency, reduce backlogs, and enhance fairness in labour law enforcement. AI can analyze large volumes of workplace cases, assess precedents, and suggest outcomes based on legal principles, helping resolve disputes like wrongful termination more systematically.

6. Rather than voluntary adoption, India can consider sector-by-sector mandatory digitization starting with high-impact areas like contractual workers of PSUs and PM Vishwakarma beneficiaries. 

7. Last but not least, India must separate policymaking, implementation, and oversight functions.  There must be creation of an independent ombudsman systems for digital services and platform involved in gig economy. 

8. The mission should operate in true mission mode: establishing autonomous implementation units at state level with direct resource allocation, hiring authority, and performance accountability, bypassing traditional bureaucratic hierarchies that create implementation bottlenecks.

Global Lessons

Estonia’s government ministries are required to appoint AI officers and create AI implementation plans, effectively making AI adoption in public sector organizations a regulated requirement. In summary, Estonia mandates AI adoption and implementation plan within defined sectors such as education and government administration. Yet, Estonia's digital success required complete administrative restructuring before technology deployment.

Inside Amsterdam’s high-stakes experiment to create fair welfare AI: Even though Netherland Government worked hard to build a fair AI system to detect welfare fraud, the algorithm still showed bias against people with non-Dutch speaking migrants and those with lower incomes. Ethical AI needs ongoing human oversight, community involvement, and understanding that automation has limits when dealing with complex social fairness issue.

Conclusion

India's Digital ShramSetu mission confronts a fundamental paradox: it requires sophisticated state capacity to implement solutions for populations that exist precisely because of weak state capacity. India's Digital ShramSetu mission could indeed be transformative, but success requires acknowledging current limitations rather than assuming technological solutions will overcome social and economic realities. The Digital ShramSetu mission's success depends on recognizing that technology is a governance multiplier, not a governance substitute