Mint Explainers News
Whenever we feel that a news story develops layers and complexity, we get our best reporters to take their time and break down an issue to its core elements. That's how we like to think of Mint Explainers, which are free flowing articles where our journalists bring you the story behind the story.
Mint Explainer | What drove China’s trillion-dollar trade surplus—and why it matters
Despite a deepening domestic slowdown, Beijing’s factories are flooding world markets with ultra-cheap goods, pushing its trade surplus past $1 trillion and intensifying pressure on India and other economies.
2 min read11 Dec 2025Mint Explainer | Dirty air trick: How North Indian rice farmers outsmart satellites
With 28,000 square kilometres of crop area lit in 2025 in Punjab and Haryana, the contribution of farm fires to North India’s bad air is likely to be much higher than what is currently estimated, finds a new study.
3 min read10 Dec 2025Mint Explainer | Why new norms for service roads are set to push up India’s highway project costs
Building India’s highways is set to become more expensive after the road transport ministry mandated that service roads and slip roads must be built to the same standards as main carriageways. While the new guidelines aim to improve safety, they will also push up project costs.
4 min read10 Dec 2025Mint Explainer | Why CAG plans to audit government departments in real time
India’s national auditor currently conducts most of its audits after the end of a financial year. This limits its ability to flag risks early and reduces the scope for course correction while a project is underway. The CAG now plans to fix this with continuous monitoring.
5 min read9 Dec 2025Mint Explainer | Why Indian Railways is betting on QSR chains
A new IRCTC catering category allows national food brands into stations for the first time. Here’s what’s driving the shift, and what it means for Railways, QSRs and small vendors.
4 min read9 Dec 2025Mint Explainer | IndiGo Chaos: How a decade-long pilot fatigue dispute landed DGCA in high court
IndiGo's week-long disruptions led to over 1,500 flight cancellations, prompting the DGCA to issue notices to CEO Pieter Elbers. The chaos stems from a decade-long legal dispute regarding pilot work hours and fatigue management, with a court hearing scheduled for December 15.
7 min read8 Dec 2025Mint Explainer | India’s twin burden of influenza and air pollution: Why India’s public health system is under strain
Severe air pollution in northern states, particularly the National Capital Region, is worsening the impact of the influenza surge, doctors say.
3 min read8 Dec 2025Mint Explainer | India, Russia to deepen nuclear ties: What it means for India’s 100 GW goal
Following President Vladimir Putin’s visit, India and Russia agreed to deepen cooperation at Kudankulam, advance work on a second nuclear site, and step up joint development and localization of nuclear technology.
3 min read7 Dec 2025Mint Explainer: Does India need special courts for complex drug patent wars?
Timelines for patent disputes in India can stretch years, often a setback for companies working with time-sensitive patent deadlines.
3 min read6 Dec 2025Mint Explainer | Can 72,000 public chargers fix India’s slow EV adoption?
With only 29,000 public chargers today, India’s push to add 72,000 more raises a bigger question: will the infrastructure keep pace with accelerating EV demand?
4 min read5 Dec 2025Popular Topics
Budget
The Union Budget contains details about the estimated receipts and the expenditure of the government for a particular fiscal year. The Budget is allotted for the upcoming fiscal year, which runs from 1st April to 31st March of the next year. Here is a quick guide on how the Union Budget is prepared
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