Recent Updates

The Innovation Imperative: ANRF and India’s Research Vision
Education Oct 17, 2025

The Innovation Imperative: ANRF and India’s Research Vision

India’s research ecosystem is gaining momentum, but it is still highly concentrated. Anusandhan National Research Foundation’s success depends on whether it can democratise innovation – not just fund it. ...

India’s Q1 GDP: The Deflator Debate and Beyond
Indian Economy Sep 18, 2025

India’s Q1 GDP: The Deflator Debate and Beyond

India’s 7.8% Q1 GDP growth withstands scepticism—sectoral trends and real indicators show momentum beyond mere statistical optics. ...

IRCTC’s Aadhaar Mandate and the Test of Proportionality
Domestic Politics and Governance Sep 12, 2025

IRCTC’s Aadhaar Mandate and the Test of Proportionality

IRCTC’s Aadhaar mandate for Tatkal tickets aims to curb fraud, but without legal backing, it risks overreach and new hurdles for passengers. ...

Why India must Expand the PLI Scheme Further
Indian Economy Sep 11, 2025

Why India must Expand the PLI Scheme Further

India must expand the PLI scheme as a nation-building strategy that drives exports, high-skill jobs, and global manufacturing competitiveness ...

Custody is Not Conviction: The Threat to Rule of Law
Law and Justice Sep 10, 2025

Custody is Not Conviction: The Threat to Rule of Law

The introduction of the Constitution new bill appears to be a well-intentioned effort however, risks undermining due process and democracy ...

PM-eBus Sewa: Paving India’s Path to Electric Public Mobility
Transportation Sep 08, 2025

PM-eBus Sewa: Paving India’s Path to Electric Public Mobility

The PM-eBus Sewa Scheme blends financial innovation with sustainability to accelerate India’s shift towards cleaner, inclusive, and resilient urban mobility. ...

GST Reforms 2025: Ushering the Era of GST 2.0
Indian Economy Sep 05, 2025

GST Reforms 2025: Ushering the Era of GST 2.0

Streamlining GST into fewer slabs promises relief for households, clarity for businesses, and a renewed push for India’s consumption-led growth. ...

Open Book Exams in India: Beyond Rote Learning
Education Sep 02, 2025

Open Book Exams in India: Beyond Rote Learning

India’s open-book exam initiative is not a silver bullet to move away from rote learning, but if carefully phased, it can catalyse a shift toward deeper learning ...

School Fee Regulation: Comparing Delhi and Tamil Nadu’s Approaches
Education Aug 26, 2025

School Fee Regulation: Comparing Delhi and Tamil Nadu’s Approaches

Can a flexible, multi-tier oversight system work better than a top-down, court-led authority in protecting parents from arbitrary fee hikes while keeping schools financially healthy? ...

Rejuvenating Waterbodies through Nature-Based Solutions
Water Aug 25, 2025

Rejuvenating Waterbodies through Nature-Based Solutions

Nature-based Solutions are emerging as a promising approach to rejuvenate waterbodies, which face degradation of the water quality and ecological integrity   ...

Odisha’s Inclusive and Resilient Path to Urban Sanitation
Sustainable Development | Water Aug 25, 2025

Odisha’s Inclusive and Resilient Path to Urban Sanitation

Odisha’s pioneering Urban Sanitation Policy (2017)demonstrated how a decentralised, inclusive, and resilient sanitation model can transform urban environments. ...

The UN Water Conference 2026: Can it Transform South Asia’s Transboundary Cooperation?
International Affairs | Water Aug 25, 2025

The UN Water Conference 2026: Can it Transform South Asia’s Transboundary Cooperation?

The 2026 UN Water Conference could provide an impetus to South Asia’s water cooperation if it addresses the region’s unique challenges ...

Exporting Water, Importing Risk: Hidden Flows and Shared Security in South Asia
Water Aug 25, 2025

Exporting Water, Importing Risk: Hidden Flows and Shared Security in South Asia

India’s water-intensive exports fuel trade gains but heighten regional pressures, challenging sustainability and cross-border water governance. ...

Hydrating the Hydrocracy: In Search of Collaborative Offshoots
Water Aug 25, 2025

Hydrating the Hydrocracy: In Search of Collaborative Offshoots

When water challenges defy quick fixes, hydrocracies must shift—embracing collaboration, local knowledge, and smarter governance. ...

Urban–Agricultural Water Conflicts: Mitigation in the Age of Climate Change
Urbanisation | Water | Climate Change Aug 25, 2025

Urban–Agricultural Water Conflicts: Mitigation in the Age of Climate Change

With climate change straining shared water reserves, India’s cities and farms are on a collision course unless conservation, reuse, and technology drive urgent reforms. ...

India’s Water Crisis: Why Climate-Resilient Governance is Urgent
Water | Climate Change Aug 25, 2025

India’s Water Crisis: Why Climate-Resilient Governance is Urgent

India must urgently shift to climate-resilient, integrated water governance to tackle worsening scarcity, floods, and institutional fragmentation ...

Adapting to Extremes: Water Resilience for Indian Cities
Water Aug 25, 2025

Adapting to Extremes: Water Resilience for Indian Cities

As climate-driven extreme events are on the rise, Indian cities must adopt sustainable and adaptive water management to tackle them ...

The Cost of Leakage: How Water Losses Fuel Unsustainable Choices
Water Aug 24, 2025

The Cost of Leakage: How Water Losses Fuel Unsustainable Choices

High water losses are widening the supply gap, forcing costly and unsustainable fixes across Global South cities. ...

Scaling up Namami Gange for Rejuvenating India’s Rivers
Water Aug 24, 2025

Scaling up Namami Gange for Rejuvenating India’s Rivers

India’s Namami Gange shows how agile policies and institutions can accelerate river rejuvenation, offering lessons for all interstate rivers. ...

Hydro-Social Commons: Springs for Resilient Mountain Cities
Water Aug 24, 2025

Hydro-Social Commons: Springs for Resilient Mountain Cities

Natural Springs are essential but neglected lifelines for urban water security in mountain cities. Reimagining them as urban water commons offers a path toward city resilience in a climate-challenged future. ...

At the Water’s Edge: Shaping Inclusive Coastal Urban Futures
Water Aug 24, 2025

At the Water’s Edge: Shaping Inclusive Coastal Urban Futures

As climate change intensifies risks along the world’s coastlines, inclusive approaches to water governance and the blue economy are essential for building resilient coastal cities that safeguard both livelihoods and ecosystems. ...

Beyond Access: Ensuring Water Safety in Arsenic-Affected India
Water Aug 24, 2025

Beyond Access: Ensuring Water Safety in Arsenic-Affected India

The arsenic crisis underscores the need to move beyond pipes and pumps toward a people-centred approach where safety, transparency, and community participation define India’s water security. ...

Endocrine Disruptors in India’s Drinking Water
Water Aug 24, 2025

Endocrine Disruptors in India’s Drinking Water

Endocrine-disrupting chemicals are slipping from sewage, through treatment plants, into India’s taps, threatening public health while regulations lag behind. ...

Source to Glass: Water Quality Risks in Hyderabad’s Low-Income Settlements
Water Aug 24, 2025

Source to Glass: Water Quality Risks in Hyderabad’s Low-Income Settlements

From treatment plant to household, Hyderabad’s water supply faces recontamination—posing major health risks for thousands in low-income areas. ...

Beyond Midnight’s Promise: Is “Inclusive Wealth” the pathway to Viksit Bharat@2047?
Indian Economy | Developing and Emerging Economies Aug 14, 2025

Beyond Midnight’s Promise: Is “Inclusive Wealth” the pathway to Viksit Bharat@2047?

India can pursue the trinity of efficiency, equity, and sustainability by combining socialist-era equity, liberalisation’s efficiency, and climate-era ecological sensibilities ...

International Youth Day 2025: Skilling India’s Youth for a Changing World
Skilling Aug 11, 2025

International Youth Day 2025: Skilling India’s Youth for a Changing World

As global labour markets and technology disrupt traditional pathways to success, can India ensure that every youth truly benefits from 21st-century skill development? ...

Contributors

K. Raja Menon

K. Raja Menon

Rear Admiral K. Raja Menon (Retd) is a career naval officer and submarine specialist who commanded seven ships and submarines during his service. He retired in 1994 as the Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Operations). ...

Read More + S. Paul Kapur

S. Paul Kapur

S. Paul Kapur is currently on leave from ORF and is serving as Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. Between 2020-2021, Mr Kapur served on the State Department’s Policy Planning Staff, ...

Read More +