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Qatar aims to be a political power broker in the Middle East as witnessed by its efforts in brokering the temporary Israel-Hamas truce. However, with

This study discusses three major mega free trade agreements (the TPP, TTIP and the RCEP) and attempts to develop a strategy for India to navigate the repercussions engendered by these groupings and thereby safeguard India?s trade and sustain its economic growth.

Adam Smith was among the first to challenge mercantilism and the guild system by association. Smith believed that the wealth of nations depended on th

If the Obama Administration avoids the temptation of returning to business as usual with Rawalpindi, it has an opportunity to get both Afghanistan and Pakistan right.

Previous attempts at building alternate multilateral institutions like the New Development Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank have been hij

The failure of Beijing’s authoritarian approach to covid is a moment to emphasize why democracies meet aspirations better

In China’s attempt to project its soft power, it engaged in vaccine diplomacy in Southeast Asia to counter the narrative of the virus’ origins and

The Smart Cities Mission in India, launched in 2015, is a unique experiment undertaken with the aim of improving people’s quality of life in cities. It bypasses traditional institutional approaches and employs innovative methods to achieve its targets. This brief provides an overview of the work initiated under the mission since its inception and explores the gains so far. It documents sectoral reforms and conducts a critical appraisal of the m

The Indian government’s “Smart Cities Mission” aims to drive economic growth and improve quality of life through “smart” solutions for the delivery of infrastructure and services. This is expected to transform living spaces, enhance quality of life, and provide employment opportunities, in turn helping reduce crime rates and promoting law and order. Among the challenges to the “Smart Cities” programme is terrorism—especially in ur

Why is it that despite sharing significant commonalities, India and China remain trapped in a relationship that projects them as inevitable rivals? This paper examines the promise of these bilateral relations and attempts to sound the death knell to the old narrative.

The new Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA) is market-friendly but is lacking in attention to privacy requirements for sensitive personal data. This report highlights three types of sensitive personal data—i.e., biometric, financial, and health—and emphasises the need for transparent consent mechanisms that will safeguard an individual’s data. It underscores the role of data fiduciaries, urging the formulation of clear operational

The Digital Silk Road (DSR), part of the Belt and Road Initiative, symbolises China’s approach to expanding information exchanges and digital cooperation with emerging markets and developing economies. Under the DSR, several private corporations and state-owned enterprises supported by Chinese state banks are offering inexpensive technological contracts and rapidly building digital infrastructure projects. This brief examines the operationalisa

With 23.5 per cent proposed salary hikes, everyone expects that the government will work more efficiently. But the hard performance criteria of the pr

The surge of Myanmarese refugees in Thailand has made the need to reform the latter’s national refugee policy more pronounced

This paper examines the maritime infrastructure of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)--tracing the history of the development of its maritime organisation, infrastructure and strategy. The paper focuses on the salience of sea power as perceived by a violent non-state actor and provides a perspective on how non-state actors employ sea power in asymmetric conflicts

Fifty-six years after the ceasefire line was drawn between the Indian and Pakistan occupied Kashmir, the underlying seismic fault lines have made a mockery of this line. This map delineation, which was renamed as Line of Control after the 1971 Indo Pak war, has gone out of control, at least temporarily, by the fury of the nature when the earthquake struck this area on 8 October.

On top of the violence and upheaval of Partition, the integration of more than 550 princely states, and a war with Pakistan over Kashmir, the British

The Internet serves as a unique prospect for empowerment and a powerful tool for realising the freedom of expression.

China has employed cognitive warfare tactics to sway the opinions and beliefs of the Taiwanese public without resorting to direct military confrontati

The female workforce in India is changing as younger women with higher levels of education enter the workforce

The success of this new scheme can only be gauged once it has been implemented and tweaked over time.

What does it mean to speak of an ‘Indian’ approach to international affairs? Indian International Relations (IR) is commonly presented as merely a derivative of ‘western’ disciplinary traditions in Europe and North America. This obscures the vast body of work on political science and international thought that emerged from the beginning of the 20th century amongst South Asian intellectuals, scholars, and activists. This forgotten history

As terrorists and violent extremists adapt their online tactics in the era of AI, counterterrorism efforts should also evolve, employing new tools and

India is at a crossroads. It has the largest young workforce anywhere in the world, and is the fastest growing economy today. At the same time, the economy is not creating enough jobs, and therefore not fully harnessing its “demographic dividend” in preparation for the “Fourth Industrial Revolution”. To create more and better jobs, certain fundamental realities need to be recognised – the untapped opportunities in the services sector, t

With the rise of digital labour platforms, new forms of employment are emerging that deviate from the “standard employment relationship.”

The COVID-19 pandemic is transforming the world of work. As new occupations are emerging in this digitised landscape, the skills and competencies required for jobs are evolving as well. This brief examines the skills gaps that persist across the G20 countries, and argues that they will need to adapt their education and training mechanisms to the changing skills requirements. Although nearly all presidencies of the G20 forum have prioritised youth

Despite the suffusion of gender in almost all socio-cultural-economic-environmental endeavour, the gender lens to development needs to be interpreted

The gendered impacts of heatwaves and water scarcity in India underscore the urgent need for comprehensive strategies that prioritise the well-being a

As major economies attempt to de-risk from China, India can make the most of this opportunity by attracting global economic investments in varied sect

The 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, often hailed as a diplomatic triumph, aims to limit temperature increases to below 2 degrees Celsius (C), preferably to 1.5 degrees C, compared to pre-industrial levels. However, with the United Nations (UN) having failed to establish a method for putting a price on carbon, greenhouse gas emissions have continued to rise, and global temperatures increased by more than 1.2 degrees C in 2020. Already, experts warn

Germany’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic has earned it almost all-round approval. This special report argues that there is indeed much that German policy has gotten right. But it is also important to keep an eye on the limitations and failings, for which Germany – and other countries that seek to emulate it – might end up paying a very dear price. In contrast, a timely correction of some aspects of German policy could help pre-empt bo

Regulations of the geospatial data need to be employed in a manner that is conducive to the private sector whilst keeping the defence sector in mind.

It seems like the stakeholders in the U.S economic debate are tired with all the "economic pornography" - with all the apocalyptic warnings about debt ceilings, trade deficits, faltering housing recoveries and stubborn unemployment, and are waiting for externally created solutions.

Over the years, India has attempted to find political as well as legal solutions to its border dispute with China; these efforts have met with little success. This paper argues that the reason a resolution to the India–China border issue remains elusive is the inadequate understanding—and enforcement—of International Law. It examines the sustainability of China’s position, as well as its general approach to International Law, its interpre

This brief examines the Kashmir conflict from the perspective of the young population who have grown up in tumultuous times in the Valley. It builds on findings of field surveys conducted by the author across the Kashmir Valley over the last two years, covering issues that remain unanswered three decades since the start of the insurgency. These topics include Kashmiriyat, the exodus of pandits, governance and administration, the post-2016 unrest

This paper dissects the history and politics of Gilgit-Baltistan, a part of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), from the 1980s to the present day. It analyses the policies implemented by Pakistani leaders in the region and how successive political parties have attempted to justify Pakistan’s administrative control of it while disregarding any democratic, secular or moral principles in the ruling of its supposed subjects. The pap

Narendra Modi's emphasis on Vajpayee's foreign policy legacy is politically significant for a number of reasons. It has offered much-needed reassurance all around that India will not abandon its traditional nuclear restraint, continue to seek peace with neighbours and promote regional prosperity through the economic integration of the subcontinent.

While it might be tempting to dismiss the importance of international rating agencies based on periods of robust inflows of foreign investment, the im

Mr Narendra Modi's decision to invite the Head of Governments of India's neighbouring countries for his swearing-in was appreciated by Dr Sanjaya Baru, former Media Advisor of Dr Manmohan Singh. Modi's emphasis on the economy was also noted.

The Pokhran II nuclear tests saw India re-imagining itself in the emerging global strategic landscape and the domestic establishment of a new politica

In a sense, Putin is seeking to rewrite history, with an attempt to push NATO back and restore Russian stature

Both the spread and speed of the internet in India will have a direct impact on India's economy. India's e-government schemes will find faster delivery of services. Sectors like e-commerce will be able to grow. And India's IT and ITES sectors will also remain in the race to be a sure avenue for employment and income generation.

The agriculture sector’s contribution to India’s GDP and employment makes it crucial to the country’s growth. At the same time, the sector’s massive greenhouse gas emissions pose a threat to India’s green transition. The ongoing farmers’ protests also highlight the need for a climate-smart agriculture strategy that will address fundamental issues like income support. This brief outlines a framework for India’s “new green revolutio

Xi Jinping's foreign policy gives acute emphasis to the development of silk roads. The closer Moscow and Beijing get, the more Russia will have to adjust to China's interests. It is important to understand that while Moscow depends heavily on Beijing, the situation is not true in the reverse.

Russia’s and China’s attempt to explore alternative trade route by financing the Northern Sea route could open a new theatre of contestation

If we are empowered enough, we can see order in chaos and focus our efforts on social innovation to ‘make things happen’ — but above all, we lea

The Indian model of federalism may be one of the most interesting typologies in the world, characterised as it is by a paradox, to begin with: that of being a “centralised federalism.” This paper provides a temporal framework in the discourse on Indian federalism by outlining the history of the country’s federal structure in four different time periods, from the birth of the Indian republic to these contemporary times. It shows how the prev

The "India Out" campaign in Bangladesh following the recent general election seems to be an attempt by the Opposition to further their political prosp

Why was the farmers’ protest restricted to Punjab, Haryana, and NUGP despite having the least number of farmers?

The burial of another superpower in the graveyard of empires resets the regional security balance in South Asia with New Delhi being left to make some