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To improve South Asian regional cooperation, Modi has three options. The first is to focus on a two-speed Saarc. The second is to build on transregional institutions like the BIMSTEC. However, it is the third way -- unilateral action -- that offers Modi the greatest opportunity. For example, Modi has already proposed to build a Saarc satellite for use by its neighbours.

The question remains as to how the Modi government will choose to address nuclear liability issue, balancing both the supplier and the domestic concerns. Dilution of the Liability Act is not an option, which is an important lesson learnt globally.

Alternatively, for India, BRICS remains a non-West platform as reiterated by PM Modi at the Russia summit that the organisation must not foster a notion that it seeks to replace international institutions.

In his Kozhikode speech, Modi managed to underscore how Pakistan was going against the forces of history and how isolated it stood today as a result.

As usual there is speculation about the normalcy of the monsoons. A deficient monsoon this year will certainly aggravate the stress of farmers who suffered losses due to the unseasonal rains in the last winter season. It will also dent the high growth profile that India is currently enjoying. Such a situation will test Modi's ability to manage crisis.

Pakistan is grappling with multiple challenges currently and perhaps the only silver lining on the horizon is the possibility of a deeper economic relationship with India. There were more questions than answers about the situation inside Pakistan.

The share of women’s cooperatives in India is just about 2.5 percent and more than half of those are dormant. Can 2025, the International Year of Cooperatives, provide the impetus for transformation?

Instead of dealing with the Mullaperiyar dam controversy as a geo-political conflict, it should be tackled as an institutional, legal and administrative failure in the region. Equitable distribution of the benefits of the shared resource is not an impossible task to achieve.

It makes more sense to enable domestic multi-brand retailers to become strong and see how they develop the village infrastructure and supply chains. It would be risky to usher in oligopolistic global retailers without any strings attached and allowing them to take a big slice of India's huge retail market.

The process of reforms in the electoral system to ensure electoral integrity has began, but much remains to be achieved. Ultimately, electoral integrity could be restored only by the will of the people and it is in people's power to do so.

Disappointed at the lack of progress in resolving the Kashmir issue through the Indo-Pak composite dialogue, Gen Pervez Musharraf is reported to have said, ¿Let me give another bombshell, I propose, one way of moving forward.... Take three towns, Srinagar, Kupwara and Baramula. Let all the military move out of the cities to the outskirts. (We) will ensure there is no militancy inside....

The internal security situation in southern Thailand, which has seen a recrudescence of long dormant Muslim anger against the Government since the beginning of this year, has again taken a turn for the worse with the death of six Muslims allegedly due to firing by the security forces outside a police station in the Narathiwat province on October 25,2004,

One needs to be cautious in pronouncing that the recent Myanmar Operation by the Indian army is a new, all-purpose security and counter-insurgency/counter-terrorism doctrine for every eventuality, circumstance and geography. In the case of Pakistan and the Kashmir theatre, for example, things will not be as simple.

Myanmar's top military general, Than Shwe, would use his India visit to convey the message to New Delhi that his country's relationship with India remains strong and undiluted in the backdrop of the recent events.

The imposition of sanctions was intended to effect political change inside Myanmar, albeit unsuccessful, in the first place. And because the issue is how best to encourage change, perhaps, it is the right time to lift sanctions as incentive for change.

The Observer Research Foundation organized a round table discussion on Climate Change on August 26, 2009 at its New Delhi campus. The theme speaker was Mr. Owen Jenkins, Counsellor for Climate Change and Energy, British High Commission and the DFID.

This report examines the financial challenges of the Nagpur Metro in the state of Maharashtra, focusing on the gap between projected and actual ridership figures and its implications for revenue generation. It identifies gaps in the revenue streams, evaluates alternative funding mechanisms, and recommends a shift towards diversified, context-specific financial strategies. The findings underscore the need for institutional reforms—in particular,

Pakistan has for long been grappling with several fundamental problems without any visible signs of overcoming them. Its economic, social and political indicators are amongst the lowest in the world. In its conflicts with India, which it perceives as its sworn enemy, all its tactics have proven to be of insignificant success, as has its intrusive attempts to control Kabul so as to gain strategic depth in Afghanistan. The successive governments' m

चीनच्या दृष्टीने युरोपीय गटाचे राजकारण यावेळी इंडो-पॅसिफिकपर्यंत विस्तारू शकणार आहे.

The Indo-Pacific, which holds most of the world’s mangroves, faces serious risks from natural disasters, including those related to the long-term sustainability of coastal communities and valuable ecosystems. Mangroves uphold biodiversity, support ecosystem functionality, and sustain local livelihoods; however, financing their conservation is proving to be a massive challenge. This report examines the ecosystem services provided by mangroves, i

Biological weapons can come from naturally occurring microbes and viruses; but innovations in genomic editing are opening up new, potentially more threatening avenues for their development. These innovations can cause or spread disease or resist known therapeutic approaches. Addressing such threats of biowarfare requires obtaining reliable and informative taxonomies for the pathogens and timely and effective responses. This, in turn, calls for co

India remains an essential anchor in the Indo-Pacific

Though GDP growth in India may be less than China's, there are not so many problems that the government is facing except perhaps the latest problem of accelerated insurgency by the Maoists. Like China, India should also be worried about reducing the glaring inequality of incomes and balanced development between the rural and urban areas.

At a discussion on "Conversations on Kashmir: Socio-political and economic aspirations of J&K" at ORF, panellists insisted upon the need for truth and reconciliation which, however, can only be possible after the admission of guilt by the parties concerned.

Even if GDP growth rises in India, there will be growing inequalities unless there are strong policies aimed at the uplift of the vulnerable sections and the rich are taxed in an efficient and judicious manner. There should be some insurance against unemployment and sickness which will enable low income families to live with dignity.

India and the UK have a history of commitment to further educational ties as India is one of the biggest contributors to the British Higher Education system. As of 2019-2020, there are over 53,000 Indians enlisted in the UK educational institutions.

The founder-president of the French Institute of International Relations, Mr. Thierry de Montbrial, has suggested that the United Nations system should and could be rethought as an organization where all governance mechanism could find their coherence.

International politics rather than law or policy will also play a key role in a future Modi visit to the US. There is certainly an element of the hyperbole in Obama's declaration that the American relationship with India is "a defining partnership of the century ahead". But it contains more than a grain of truth.

The commissioning of the homegrown INS Vikrant in September has revived debates within India’s strategic community and the decision-making elite, on the desirability and viability of aircraft carriers for the Indian Navy. It remains unclear how these debates are settled among the political, bureaucratic, and military classes, and how decisions are made around the Navy's force structures, particularly on the issue of aircraft carriers. This pape

Agriculture is one area in which the US wants a level-playing field. As the world is recovering from the financial crisis, new rules are being set for the benefit of those who have not done well. India and China have to watch out against the neo-protectionist policies of the West.

Nepal's political vacuum in these times is doubly dangerous as it leaves the field open to inroads by various interests. A weak administration gives a free run to the Maoist cadres to operate on both sides of the India Nepal border that also weakens the counter insurgency grid.

There has been an overall decline in the freedom of press and right to information in Nepal. Although the political actors have long upheld the peoples' right to information, media is faced with harsh situations on ground with political party cadres, especially the Maoists, resorting to violence and other intimidation tactics against the journalists to suppress free press.

It is almost a year since fresh elections to the Constituent Assembly in Nepal took place for the formation of a new government and the writing of a new constitution that would, as was expected then, be a breath of fresh air for a country long engulfed in political and social unrest -- and political and constitutional instability afterward.

The road ahead in Nepal's fragile political landscape is becoming much bleaker with increasing power tussle. While Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai is insisting that he will hand over power only to an elected government.

Amid all political and economic impasses Nepal¿s incumbent Government under Prime Minister Surya Bahadur Thapa, announced ¿amnesty¿ to the Maoist insurgents on December 18, 2003 and called them to surrender along with their weapons, relatives and friends before February 12, 2004.

This brief discusses the character of Nepal’s responses to recurring India-Pakistan conflicts, with a focus on the 2025 military escalation following the Pahalgam terrorist attack. Despite deep-rooted military, cultural, and economic ties with India—including the longstanding recruitment of Nepali Gurkhas into the Indian Army—Nepal’s response has remained anchored in strategic ambiguity, balancing condemnation of terrorism with a delibera

This paper analyses the debate surrounding federal restructuring in Nepal and the position taken by various political stakeholders. It argues that an early political consensus on federalism is imperative; otherwise, the country may slip into greater ethnic conflict. Nepal is currently experiencing perhaps one of the most turbulent phases in its contemporary political history. In 2008, Nthe 240-year-old institution of monarchy—for long seen a

India's flagship economic diplomacy programme, the grant of Lines of Credit (LOC), has had immense success in expanding the country's development cooperation around the world. In the African region, for instance, countries have found LOCs to be appropriate alternatives to traditional development assistance. LOCs are a popular tool among countries looking to fund their development goals. Closer to home, Nepal has received more than $1 billion in d

Like the Arab Spring, the netizen revolt was against a "perceived" threat to their empowerment. In this case, cheap access to the internet, which ironically is also one of PM Modi's promises to the entire nation.

Kashmir is not new to ISIS flags being waved in the valley; however, the number of instances of this is negligible.

New digital age won't be as much fun if we don't talk about privacy. Privacy should not be limited to headline grabbing revelations about surveillance, Snowden and Sony; these conversations need to be mainstreamed to every citizen-consumer.

As every stakeholder, both inside and outside Myanmar, is trying to seize the opening, US has taken he lead with its Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's ice-breaking visit to Myanmar and her meetings with President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Raja Pervez Ashraf became Pakistan's 25th Prime Minister eight months before the country goes to polls. His predecessor, Yousaf Raza Gilani, was disqualified by the Supreme Court on June 19, 2012 for failing to implement court's directions to investigate corruption charges against President Asif Ali Zardari.

The US threats and its troop presence in South Korea are alleged to have contributed to North Korean insecurity, but its drive to develop more nuclear weaponry cannot be understood without taking into account domestic dynamics. To bring about a genuine change in North Korea's behaviour, its internal dynamics will have to be considered.

Saudi Arabia's Nitaqat system has achieved some early success. It has been able to generate jobs for the Saudi population. But its long term success is open to question. It remains to be seen whether 'Saudization' will be successfully implemented long term through quotas and threats of punishment.

The recent 'off-the-record' comment by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh against "about 25% Bnagladeshis" has dented the India-Bangladesh relations. There is a need for us to show more sensitivity while dealing with Bangladesh, a country that has gone out of its way to improve its relationship with India.

Like a bad dream, the Dr AQ Khan episode has returned to haunt the world. There are a number of reasons why it will do so in the coming days. First, it is one of the most serious crimes committed against humanity.

Deploying the "national security" argument against reform in the intelligence agencies is a fig leaf for defending cronyism, incompetence, inefficiency, and corruption. A proper regulatory mechanism can only strengthen national security, not weaken it. It is time to bring in facts and lessons from global best practices to this debate.