The US federal debt is $40 trillion, and the annual interest burden is $1 trillion. This puts upward pressure on interest rates all over the world. War-induced inflation, made worse by tariffs, adds further pressure.
India government's interest payment obligation is already whopping 40% of revenue receipts (i.e. tax revenue plus RBI dividend). Interest cost is ₹ 15 trillion, and will rise. This huge burden must be covered either by cutting expenses (esp. on health, education, public services, or making UPI unfree) or by raising more taxes.
Reducing public services and allowing health and education to crumble ends up hurting the poor much more. The state of higher education, and NITI Aayog's recent report on jobless youth is a grim confirmation. There are nearly a million unfilled vacancies in the central government alone (sanctioned but not filled). That too is partly because of fund crunch. Many schools have had to shut down, and university positions lie vacant.
1August 28, 2026 1K 4
