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Making a case for suspending Afghanistan from SAARC to prevent the crippling of the organisation
The unending densification of cities rob all the initiatives from making a visible positive impact
The view from Dhaka was summed up in a journal thus: ¿The cumulative case against a dependable relationship between India and Bangladesh is a very strong one¿ since Bangladesh suffers from ¿a serious lack of bargaining power¿ and hence needs ¿a viable strategy of alliances with China, Burma, Nepal and Pakistan¿. Adventurism is its logical outcome.
Independent of the ruling party or leader in Colombo, New Delhi’s concerns viz China in Sri Lanka is bound to grow.
The apparent hydrological paradox is natural, but its impact is man-made.
Sri Lanka’s current crisis is an opportunity for India to draw the island nation away from China
Technology - a boon or a bane for the environment and climate?
The emergence of the Tehrik-E-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) as the largest religious political party in the country has introduced a new, aggressive element in Pakistan’s polity. Although the TLP does not have an armed militant wing, it has demonstrated both its street power and the strength of its electoral base only six years since it was set up in 2015. Exploiting deeply emotional issues like the finality of Prophethood and Blasphemy against the Pr
The pandemic has presented a window of opportunity to reimagine the way we work and imbibe the flexibility to try new ideas such as telecommuting.
Investigations into the recent terrorist attacks and the subsequent chain of arrests and seizures in different parts of India, particularly rural Maharashtra, have revealed a growing alliance between jihadi groups operating from Pakistan and Bangladesh with ideologically extreme groups in India.
That is the latest position of the Government of Begum Khaleda Zia, the Bangladesh Prime Minister, in the face of growing international pressure spearheaded by the member-countries of the European Union (EU) to act against terrorist groups operating from Bangladeshi territory.
A near-bankrupt Pakistan has only two choices. It can go to the IMF and suffer reforms. Or it can carry on with its lies, vagaries and economic wet dreams
The 16+1 initiative is seen as a Chinese Trojan Horse waiting for entry into the European Union
Rather than pinning all hopes to mitigate regional tensions in West Asia on the Abraham accords, regional actors should establish new channels of comm
Taliban, Rawalpindi declared victory too soon. The game now depends on Trump’s calculations
For Washington, war weariness has set in deep.
Should the EU build up its own EU-based security apparatus in light of the US withdrawing from Afghanistan without truly consulting its EU allies?
With commercial drone operation just around the corner, relevant guidelines need to be introduced to ensure the smooth and safe functioning
Kunduz has a large ethnic mix of Pashtun, Uzbeks, Tajiks, and others - all of whom wish to hold the province. The recent move to capture Kunduz by the Taliban is significant in many ways. It is the first major engagement by the Taliban after Mullah Akhtar Mansour succeeded Mullah Omar.
It is hard to see how the BBNL-BSNL merger might boost efforts to provide broadband to India’s villages.
BRI has so far only contributed to the rise of GHGs and not to the GDP of the host countries. Is China accruing economic benefits while exporting carb
The dragon has officially risen. But as China spreads its reach and influence beyond its borders through the Belt and Road Initiative, implementation
India and Bangladesh must seize the opportunity to further enhance connectivity and trade ties
The question remains: to what extend is the BRICS able to embrace and promote plural discussion.
India’s decision to abolish cantonments after carving out the military areas, announced in April 2023, has been met with scepticism and support. Cantonments, primarily created during the British rule to station and house the military, evolved to include civilians as residents and staff to provide support and logistic services. Over time, cantonment boards, with some civilian members, were created to manage the civil areas, but the rights of civ
India’s increasing urban population is getting concentrated in its large cities.
Previous attempts at building alternate multilateral institutions like the New Development Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank have been hij
The fall in the value of the dollar would be worrying the central bankers in China because the value of their reserves also declines simultaneously. The promotion of the SDR agenda by the Chinese is certainly no coincidence given the position of the dollar today.
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
The Centre has chipped in by banning the export of beef and cows, thereby minimising the incentive for cow slaughter.
In the global urban context, cultural identity is becoming increasingly synonymous with the nature of prevalent collective activities.
Despite six months of Taliban’s catastrophic rule, the international community continues to turn a Nelson’s eye.
It is hoped that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to India not only heightens bilateral relations between the two countries but also benefits the entire region
For reasons to do with history and strategy, India will not abandon Russia.
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
The Indian municipal financial pie is woefully narrow, and a large unfunded mandate is the city’s sad fate.
Russia is now the world’s most heavily sanctioned country, with unprecedented punitive action targeting its energy exports, central bank, and other sectors. Given Russia’s economic resilience amid such economic restrictions and India’s dependence on Russia for its defence and energy requirements, this issue brief highlights the economic rationale for New Delhi to maintain existing trade ties with Moscow despite continued geopolitical pressu
India’s rising urbanisation in recent years has triggered unbridled construction activities to meet the needs of the growing populations in these cities. Not all of these constructions abide by existing laws, however, leading to adverse consequences on governance systems, the environment, people’s health, transportation services, and overall citizen well-being. In extreme cases, illegal constructions have resulted in loss of lives and propert
As the Indo-Pacific region grows in prominence, all the members of the CSC, which are democracies, will continue to play their cards based on domestic and external benefits.
Kabul fiasco will affect US’ ability to mobilise coalitions against a common cause
With the territorial defeat of ISIS in Iraq and Syria, analysts are pondering the kind of organisational form the group would take next. The influence of the so-called Islamic State in South Asia may be minimal, but India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, have all had the shadow of ISIS’ global footprint land on their doorstep. This brief sheds light on how the influence of ISIS spread across South Asia, specifically after 2014, when pro-I
