The Proposed BRICS Distributed University (BRICS.edu)

The future will need people with a high-quality education. AI is reducing opportunities for those with a mediocre education. Further, technology is making online education highly affordable.

BRICS’ member countries have good under-graduate education. So, BRICS.edu can focus on post-graduate studies and research in selected disciplines. By its very nature, it will be international and prestigious. It should not be a white elephant, sucking public funds. It should charge reasonable fees and ensure that each department prepares alumni who will earn a good salary.

A contribution each BRICS country should make is to ensure that students selected for admission to BRICS.edu gets a collateral-free loan for studies. The law could ensure that alumni who do not return to work in their own country repay the bank-loan at commercial rates.

BRICS.edu should pay its faculty well, using this as an opportunity to get back its nationals trained in the best institutions in the world. Faculty exchange mechanisms should be set up to have faculty members move between campuses of the university based on mutual interest.

BRICS countries share several common problems. So, BRICS.edu will not lack challenges for its researchers.

Every BRICS member should identify a large university and build a BRICS.edu campus near it. This would promote collaboration with the country’s best minds.

Instead of being an island of excellence, the BRICS.edu should make its courseware publicly available. It should publish all its research in free-access journals. Ideally, the university should publish its own journals. Every country should consider publishing a domestic version in a suitable language.

Srinivasan Ramani
13-09-2026

The next million jobs in India

Software & Software‑enabled Services (SSeS) was the first non-traditional economic activity which gave a boost to India’s exports.

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2219981&reg=48&lang=2

Since 2022, the gig economy has been a major contributor to the economy, quality of life, and employment in India. However, this cannot continue without government initiative. The first few years of success have been due to the absence of regulatory control. It was largely driven by the telecom revolution: the spread of affordable cell phones and access to the Internet. Employment in India’s gig sector is expected to grow from 7.7 million workers in 2020–21 to 23.5 million workers by 2029–30, according to NITI Aayog (Government of India). Careful government initiatives will be necessary to support such growth.

Mere control will be counterproductive. Initiatives to create greater opportunities for growth of this sector are essential. Focusing only on the job-creation aspect will be short-sighted. The jobs created need to contribute to the consumer’s benefit and increase overall productivity.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx20qlglgw5o

One obvious area that can support a million new productive jobs is to allow all payment banks to deliver services at the consumer’s doorstep. Currently, the only bank allowed to do this is the Government of India–owned payments bank, operated by the Department of Posts (IPPB). It is a brilliant idea to enable customers to transfer money to IPPB from any bank using the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and for the post-persons deliver cash at the door.  Why should not other Payment Banks be allowed to do this? This alone may create a million productive jobs.

Another obvious area is for hospitals in the public sector to provide health services at the patient’s doorstep. I know a couple of families that found it impossible to get proper care in public hospitals.  They could not give up their jobs to wait long hours in queues and to run from one building to another. In one of these families, the main breadwinner is a cancer patient who is now without proper treatment. His wife has to slog in her job to keep body and soul together.  

Portals for public service are often user-unfriendly. It is important to audit them for user-friendliness. It is not only to serve Indian citizens. Poor quality Indian portals bring a bad name to our software and service capabilities and threaten a major export business of India.

Srinivasan Ramani

7-09-2026