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Why does Manipur continue to be on fire? Civil and human rights activists, social scientists and even the media would have you believe that the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) is primarily responsible for this. Is that so? Why is this act necessary? What does it imply?

Bangladesh offers a rare strategic opportunity to transform the geopolitics of the subcontinent. A comprehensive partnership with Dhaka might be the key that will eventually open the door to a productive engagement with Pakistan.

The government is approaching the issue of declining sex ratio with a new commitment. It should be tackled with nuanced policy interventions. Instead of introducing more schemes, the existing schemes could be made more accessible and the loopholes could be confronted.

A select group of urban sector professionals in the government and the civil society acknowledge that the problems of inequity observed in almost all Indian towns and cities could be overcome by adopting a balanced and participatory approach to urban development.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) plays a critical role in securing India amidst a world in flux. For this massive task, India must possess indigenously produced fighter aircraft engines to power its fighter aircraft variants over the next 50 years without falling into undue dependency on foreign suppliers. As the timely delivery of fighter aircraft to the IAF is linked to the security of supply chains, this brief underlines the need for both the develo

Naval diplomacy has emerged as a pillar of India’s external engagements. While conventionally regarded as a military arm, the navy is increasingly assuming a greater role as a diplomatic actor. This brief underlines three trends in India’s naval diplomacy in the Indian Ocean, shaped by its broader political outlook in the region. First, there has been a normative shift in how India views the role of the navy. Second, India’s bilateral engag

Affirmative action, especially in the form of reservation policies, to address the issues of inclusion and equity has been in place in India for a long time. The available evidence suggests that the policies of reservation have not been an unqualified success. Indeed, implementation of the reservation policies has faced a variety of issues ranging from problems of identifying the beneficiary groups and the creamy layer to legal interpretation of

More than six months into his tenure, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is possibly as far from achieving a breakthrough with the Taliban. There is no unanimity in the Taliban for peace talks. And Pakistan's failure to bring the Taliban to the table could possibly be a reflection of its limited influence over the group and a bigger obstacle to the talks may be the Taliban itself.

The voluminous participation by the Afghans in the elections, in which all major candidates asserted their desire to sign the Bilateral Security Agreement with the US, does not bode well for the Taliban, which describes signing of the BSA as "a huge crime".

The registration process for the Afghan presidential elections came to a close last week. As many as 27 candidates have filed nomination and the vetting process, by the Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC),

The COVID-19 outbreak poses immense challenges to Africa’s resilience. The pandemic’s economic fallout, caused by disruptions in global and regional value chains and a slump in commodity prices, can derail the progress which the continent has recorded in recent years. Despite the bleak forecasts, however, African countries have managed to mount a concerted response to the pandemic. This paper examines the extent of the economic and health imp

Vice President Hamid Ansari on October 1 returned to New Delhi after wrapping up a five-day visit to Nigeria and Mali and other roundups

Across Asia, there is a great demand for India to play a more active role, one befitting its size and interests. But, whenever push comes to shove, we run up against two problems-first, our economy that lacks heft and second, our military which unable to play a role outside our borders.

Be assertive close to home. But India should not shrink from distant waters, either.

The viability and dynamism of the developing world's agriculture sector remains essential to secure success in the developing world's poverty alleviation strategies. The next ministerial at Bali in December must ensure pressure remains on developed nations to meet the aspirations of developing countries with regards to the global agriculture trade.

China has criticized the latest round of new rules by saying that it will “disrupt the international semiconductor market as well as cooperation among enterprises.”

US lawmakers have sought to make several commendable moves but their plan still comes up short

In the backdrop of Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to India, a roundtable discussion was organized by Observer Research Foundation on December 1, 2006 to assess the outcome of the visit and its impact on relations between the two countries. The discussion focused on how the India-China relationship would evolve in the wake of the visit.

The phenomenon of individuals leaving their home country and making their way to conflict zones to join terror and insurgent groups is not new. In the past few years, however, the numbers of these “foreign fighters” have increased: thousands of people from more than 80 countries have made their way to Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and other battle zones. As countries in the West struggled to deal with these intra-geographic threats from radicalis

While Kremlin may be playing to a Russian audience by blocking the West, broader interests, namely, geopolitics, multilateralism, regional stability, and doubts about the feasibility of UNSC resolutions drive its actions in Syria.

The US Congressional Staff was pointed out that though Pakistan's political machinery is willing to work with all parties, including India, on Afghanistan, the army apparatus and the ISI still remains a liability. These factors must be taken into account while US deals with Pakistan.

The Indian Army and the much-vilified social media is coming to the rescue of hapless victims of unprecedented flood in J&K. The use of social media for malicious purposes is proven. The use of the medium to incite and radicalise is also rampant. Yet it is a force for good as we saw this past week. Challenge and vilify the user, do not condemn the tool.

The events after the presentation of the 'Jan Lok Pal Bill' draft by 'Team Anna' has unfolded on expected lines. The Government's softened Bill, defending its politico-constitutional position on the inclusion of Prime Minister.

The birth of AQIS at the time when al Qaeda is loosening its grip over the jihadist movement in the Middle East, which has been taken over by the Islamic State (IS), raises questions about al Qaeda's possible resurgence in South Asia.

Three top Jamaat-e-Islami leaders -- amir Motiur Rahman Nizami, general secretary Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojahid, and naib amir Delwar Hossain Sayedee -- were arrested on June 29. The Jamaat leaders were charged with war crimes of 1971 and hurting popular religious sentiments.

In India, 600 million people face acute water shortages, and the demand for domestic water has risen by some 20 percent since COVID-19, as awareness about hygiene increased. The use of treated wastewater is among the strategies that can be employed to address the shortage. This brief makes an economic case for using treated water to plug the increasing demand-supply gap by comparing key learnings from successful global models and highlighting how

In the last five years, Xi has established unprecedented control over the party and the government. But this also means his mistakes and missteps have been magnified.

Given the Indian government's taste for pushing unilateral mechanisms for governing the internet at an international level, and Indian civil society, which for the most part seems to vocally support a multistakeholder approach, the Indian elections might bring about a new opportunity for both sides to find clarity.

India being the closest neighbour with high stakes in the stability of Maldives, President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom's India visit from January 1 to 4 would be keenly watched, nearer home in the two countries, and afar.

As China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) continues to undertake significant organisational reforms, the asymmetric inequalities between the Indian military and PLA are set to widen.