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Why is the Navy procuring three different helicopters to fulfil three ends of the same capability spectrum? The Navy would be better off with a single platform to leverage engine and systems commonality reducing costs in the form of maintenance, acquisition of spares and the training of pilots and maintenance crews.

Does the United Nations really matter when it comes to war and peace in the 21st century? To ask this question when long promised reform of the UN seems at hand ¿ the report of the High Level Panel appointed by Secretary General Kofi Annan will be out on Thursday ¿ and India is stepping up its efforts to become a part of an expanded UN Security Council sounds heretical.

On the eve of the February 18 elections, no two people in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi were agreed on the certainty of elections taking place. Elections cannot take place, it was argued then, because the establishment will not risk an open-ended process which might produce inconvenient results. In the Pakistani context, the establishment has always meant the Army, the bureaucracy, big landlords and the United States.

If the selection for MMRCA so far has shown emphases on technicalities, the final selection should primarily be based on more concrete benefits that either company offers. The final MMRCA award would also reflect the abilities of the MoD in processing such complex contracts in the future.

Across the globe, more than 730 million women report ever having experienced some form of gender-based violence; those in low- and lower-middle-income countries are disproportionately affected. In the past two years, the COVID-19 pandemic has only increased the incidence of violence suffered by women in the hands of their intimate partners, owing to heightened stresses of loss of livelihood, disruption of social and protective networks, a

India has many reasons to nurse a nuclear grievance against China. For, Beijing's decision to arm Pakistan with nuclear weapons has given Rawalpindi the impunity to pursue cross-border terrorism against India. But Delhi has no reason at all to blame Beijing for its own failures on the nuclear policy front.

To explain the causes of the present unsatisfactory situation many in India would argue that a self-absorbed India has neglected its neighbourhood

Welcome, American liberals. Welcome to the special torment of discovering that you do not know your country.

Israel being India's most trusted ally in West Asia and among the three or four closest friends in the world, Prime Minister Modi's visit to Israel needs to be a standalone, a single country trip. The India-Israel relationship is important enough, even sacred enough, to merit that respect.

At first sight, it would appear that Sarabjit Singh's case, which dates to 1990, may fall in the category of Indian involvement. But other evidence suggests the case against him is weak. There are also reasons to believe that Sarabjit's was a case of mistaken identity

Trump's move is likely to be temporary, as he is keen to show that he has upheld his election commitments.

Controversies over the safety of the Mullaperiyar dam in Kerala and Koodamkulam Nuclear Power Project in Tamil Nadu, development issues regarding Sangur and Nandigram in West Bengal have exposed the political double talk on the excuse of people's concerns.

From America to Bangladesh and Australia to Europe, those who bet on big breakthroughs with India in the last few years can't hide their disappointment at its seeming inability to seize the opportunities at hand. It is up to Delhi to prove that the concerns of its friends and partners around the world are misplaced.

Recent announcements detailing the probability of an early NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan are not realistic, given the ground realities in the country. Lt-Col Daniel Davis in his article 'Truth lies and Afghanistan' speaks of a misleading picture presented by US leaders.

World renowned management professor and author, Dr. Jagdish Sheth, delivered a lecture on "The Tectonic Shift: The New Geoeconomic Reality" at Observer Research Foundation. Dr. Sheth, Professor of Marketing in the Goizueta Business School, Atlanta, USA, and the author of 'Chindia Rising: How China and India will benefit your business' forecast a new geo-economic reality in the world driven by markets of emerging nations.

The 'Elavarasan episode' in Tamil Nadu is a product of an electoral malady for which the political class would only offer words, not pro-active solutions. With greater educational opportunities and industrialisation nearer home rewriting the face of caste equations, the problem has worsened.

There are unlimited possibilities for strengthening maritime cooperation with Bangladesh and Myanmar - ranging from joint scientific research to environmental monitoring and from major trans-border projects to trilateral naval exercises. If Delhi decides to play for small stakes in the Bay of Bengal, it will deal itself out of the emerging great game in the east.

Given the enormity of challenges, there is a need for all the space-faring powers to unite in this exercise. It is important for India and others to debate and decide on what it thinks the norms should be and what sort of future it wants to achieve in space.

Difficult basins with poor prospects like the kind in India will never be explored or developed under fair-returns-cost-plus regimes. Successes such as those of Lundin in Norway or Cairn in Barmer do not come to the faint-hearted.

The Delhi police proposal to use drones for day-to-day law and order activities is bound to fail unless it is accompanied by a regulatory and manufacturing ecosystem for unmanned aerial vehicles

Neither the drone attacks - a significant technological innovation in air power - nor direct cross-border military raids address the ultimate source of terror, the Pakistan army. They merely target the manifestation of the problem.

Observer Research Foundation in collaboration with the Delhi University conducted the third summer workshop for undergraduate students of Delhi University from 17 May to 2 June. The theme of this year's workshop was "Contemporary Challenges and the Making of Public Policies".

Mark Lynas is right. Completely divorced from research and data Indian activism today is a cesspool of myths and misconceptions

The navy has been undertaking anti-piracy operations in the region with significantly greater purpose than at any time since 2008

In September 2002, the Bush administration officially introduced its national security strategy report. In response to the devastating attacks on the epicentre of America's financial and defence establishment, President Bush outlined the fundamental tenets of a strategy that was authored to contend with changes caused due to the "profound transformation" in the current security environment. President Bush proclaimed that, in order to protect Amer

The unsolicited US$ 18.5 billion bid for acquisition of the petroleum major Unocal by China National Offshore Oil Company (Cnooc), the Honk-Kong based subsidiary of China's third largest oil company, has sent the business, and political, world into a tizzy.

Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) in India is enshrined in the Constitution and mandated under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act 2009. Yet, its implementation remains tentative for many reasons, primary of which is the absence of a clear government guideline regarding which Ministry is tasked with policymaking and implementation. This brief attempts to offer an answer for the government. It examines the conc

Anyone driving to the hills on the mandatory pilgrimage trail cannot but notice the ubiquitous drum or two in front of roadside stalls - its presence advertising fuels in a way that no pure-for-sure campaign can match.

India's ranking in the World Bank's ease of doing business index is 134. Ease of doing business has ease of settling commercial disputes at its centre. With the Arbitration and Conciliation (amendment) Bill coming in place, India could play a greater role in shaping the way forward.

The recent developments in East China Sea carry a high risk of confrontation and miscalculation in the already volatile region. Beijing's unilateral move to extend its authority and control in the region runs against its policy to change its image amongst its neighbours.

In 2019, India and Russia announced their intent to connect the ports in their respective cities, Chennai and Vladivostok. One year on, the project remains only on paper. This paper explores the economic and strategic viability of this proposed maritime connectivity corridor. While not purporting to be a feasibility study, this analysis seeks to examine the potential benefits and pitfalls of the proposed link and its place in the Indo-Russia stra

This paper makes an assessment of the situation in eastern Ladakh following the Chinese occupation of several areas across the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the summer of 2020. That occupation led to an incident in the Galwan river valley in mid-June, which resulted in deaths on both Indian and Chinese sides—the first such casualties since 1975. The paper outlines the course of events since then, and the negotiations that have been on

Indians may be suspicious of China and the Chinese of India. But it is the West which does not want to accept the strategic consequences of a rising Asia.

The EC is a child of political happenstance and jugaad, not thoughtful institutional strategy.

A discussion with Dr. Sonika Gupta on “China: Thirty Years After Tiananmen” at ORF, Chennai, on 3 August 2019, questioned whether the ongoing Hong Kong protests could be seen as a continuation of Tiananmen?

As political stalemate characterises present-day Nepal, analysts are worried over the impending economic fallout of the same in the erstwhile Himalayan kingdom. Already struggling with eight-hour power shortage which at times stretches up to 16 hours a day, the country is faced with a severe economic crisis.

The Indian diaspora in the US has been instrumental in deepening and strengthening India-US relations and will continue to do so in the future, says State Senator Ellen Roberts from Colorado Legislature and Minnesota State Representative Paul Thissen.

South Asia is one of the most populous region in the world, representing about 24 per cent of the world's population. Most countries in the region are in various stages of economic development, and aspire for regional economic integration.

India's agricultural growth had not been at the targeted level of 4 per cent in the past few years, but it was 4.6 per cent in the last quarter. Due to a good monsoon, the agricultural growth rate is likely to be higher at around 4.9 per cent. It will lead to higher demand for goods and is likely to give a fillip to industry this year.

After a successful launch in January this year in Berlin, the Economic Policy Forum, a new alliance of think tanks from emerging economies and selected developed economies, met at a conference on 'Resources Policy: Energy and Environment.' The meeting also facilitated an initial conversation on 'The Prospects for Regional Integration.'

The main culprit for the sharp rise in the current account deficit is the increase in gold imports and the hefty payment for oil imports. People are buying gold because they are apprehensive about the outlook on inflation. They think of gold as a reliable asset whose value has appreciated the most in the past few years.

It is interesting to note the accommodations that China made in its educational system to inspire its exponential growth in economic and defence capability. Its educational reforms aimed at transitioning China from a manufacturing hub to a leader in innovation. Today China has the largest network of primary education in the world.

Saying that there is a proven link between the two types of terrorists - sectarian and Taliban -- Maj. Gen. Mahmud Durrani stresses the need for carrying out educational reforms and popularising a counter-narrative to Taliban's interpretation of Islam.

The combination of high food inflation, general inflation and lack of sufficient job opportunities due to slow growth in the manufacturing sector can spell disaster for a highly populated country like India.