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Between Diplomacy and Displacement: The Contradictions of the Rohingya Repatriation Discourse
Neighbourhood Jul 16, 2025

Between Diplomacy and Displacement: The Contradictions of the Rohingya Repatriation Discourse

The Bangladesh interim administration’s announcement in April this year—that it would soon repatriate 180,000 of its 700,000-odd Rohingya refugees back to Myanmar—was quickly hailed as a diplomatic victory. This paper analyses the claim, using semi-structured interviews and thematic analyses of refugee narratives, to highlight its ...

Building a Smarter Medical Devices Ecosystem in India: Regulation, Innovation, and Accessibility
Healthcare Jul 14, 2025

Building a Smarter Medical Devices Ecosystem in India: Regulation, Innovation, and Accessibility

India’s medical devices sector is poised to grow from a US$11-billion industry to US$50 billion by 2030. This expansion, however, hinges on regulatory reform, investment in innovation, and improved accessibility. Historically governed by drugs-centric laws, India’s medical devices sector now falls under the purview of ...

Rethinking Quality Education: Perspectives from the Capability Approach
Education Jul 10, 2025

Rethinking Quality Education: Perspectives from the Capability Approach

In a world increasingly being shaped by rapid technological advancements, environmental crises, and deepening inequalities, the dominant models of quality education offer a narrow and inadequate vision. This paper makes a case for a multi-dimensional and adaptable capability approach (CA) that offers a transformative lens ...

The Quad’s Infrastructure Diplomacy: Current Trends and Future Prospects
International Affairs Jul 07, 2025

The Quad’s Infrastructure Diplomacy: Current Trends and Future Prospects

Infrastructure development and connectivity paradigms are emerging as domains of geopolitical contestation between rival powers. This competition is fiercest in the Indo-Pacific region, home to roughly half of the global population and accounting for around 60 percent of the world's economy. China’s Belt and Road ...

Comprehensive Mobility Planning in Indian Cities: Challenges, Gaps, and the Way Forward
Transportation Jun 30, 2025

Comprehensive Mobility Planning in Indian Cities: Challenges, Gaps, and the Way Forward

India’s rapid urbanisation is resulting in massive mobility challenges, including congestion, inadequate public transport, and poor infrastructure for non-motorised transport. To address these issues, the Government of India introduced the Comprehensive Mobility Plan (CMP) as a strategic framework that emphasises the movement of people and ...

Quantum Communication and Encryption: Significance, Global Progress, and Implications
Digital Inclusion | Connectivity Jun 23, 2025

Quantum Communication and Encryption: Significance, Global Progress, and Implications

Quantum communication will fundamentally alter the landscape of digital communication once it becomes a practical reality. While hardware development may take time to materialise, software implementation is already underway, and holds particular importance in light of the impending threat posed by quantum computers to classical ...

Making a Case for Congestion Pricing in India’s Cities
Urbanisation in India | Urbanisation Jun 20, 2025

Making a Case for Congestion Pricing in India’s Cities

Rising traffic congestion is compelling cities around the world to look at the idea of congestion pricing on their roads. Some have already imposed it, and others are mulling over the idea. Traffic congestion has economic, environmental, physical, and psychological consequences. Since Indian cities rank ...

Old, Frail, and Poor: The Story of India’s Elderly Women
Gender Jun 17, 2025

Old, Frail, and Poor: The Story of India’s Elderly Women

Elderly women in India are disadvantaged by both gender and age. Currently, their population is estimated at 71 million, more than the total population of countries the size of the United Kingdom. A majority of them are illiterate and have no source of income. Awareness, ...

Global Health Diplomacy: Navigating Politics and Security
Healthcare Jun 06, 2025

Global Health Diplomacy: Navigating Politics and Security

Health policy is classically associated with the allocation of resources for healthcare services and the affordability and effectiveness of interventions, and is thereby confined to national strategies. Over the last couple of decades, however, there has been growing awareness about the interlinkages of health policy ...

Red-Teaming for India’s Military Establishment: Concepts, Contexts, and Consequences
Defence and Security | Indian Defence Jun 02, 2025

Red-Teaming for India’s Military Establishment: Concepts, Contexts, and Consequences

Abstract On the battlefield, the enemy’s intent, will, capabilities, and plans are taken into consideration to achieve end goals. In peacetime simulations, wargaming centred on adversaries serves the same purpose. Red-teaming is used in the planning and decision-making of a military organisation to assess one’s plans ...

Contributors

Soumya Bhowmick

Soumya Bhowmick

Soumya Bhowmick is a Fellow and Lead, World Economies and Sustainability at the Centre for New Economic Diplomacy (CNED) at Observer Research Foundation (ORF). He is pursuing his PhD and holds a double master’s degree in economics from Jadavpur University, ...

Read More + Sreeparna Banerjee

Sreeparna Banerjee

Sreeparna Banerjee is an Associate Fellow in the Strategic Studies Programme. Her work focuses on the geopolitical and strategic affairs concerning two Southeast Asian countries, namely Myanmar and Thailand. Her primary focus is on the Rohingya issue within the Bay of ...

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