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The Role of Lithium-Based Energy Storage in India’s Climate Goals
May 12, 2023

The Role of Lithium-Based Energy Storage in India’s Climate Goals

Energy storage is key to both effective integration of renewable energy systems with the electricity grid, and accelerating the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). This brief discusses the technological trends in lithium-ion (Li-Ion) batteries, and assesses the energy storage needs of the Indian power and transportation sectors. It looks at the geographic distribution of lithium and cobalt in onshore and offshore locations across

The Sustainable Development Agenda: Evaluating the G20 as a Stage for National and Collective Goals
May 10, 2023

The Sustainable Development Agenda: Evaluating the G20 as a Stage for National and Collective Goals

This brief examines the contribution of the G20 in facilitating the implementation of its member countries’ sustainable development goals. It reviews the G20 priorities over the years, its informal governance mechanisms, and the progress made so far by the member countries in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The brief finds that even as the G20 has aligned its priorities and initiatives with the SDGs, the responsibility fo

Will China’s Tall Space Goals Spur Further Competition?
Feb 07, 2022

Will China’s Tall Space Goals Spur Further Competition?

While China’s white paper on space is a good transparency move, the goals enshrined in the document may also make space more competitive.

A Food Systems Approach to Food Security and Nutrition
May 16, 2023

A Food Systems Approach to Food Security and Nutrition

The world is currently witnessing an increase in the prevalence of undernourishment as well as a rise in the incidence of overweight, obesity, and non-communicable diseases. Addressing issues of food security and nutrition would not be possible without adopting a food systems perspective—from farm to fork. Indeed, in 2021, countries developed national pathways to transforming food systems to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Developme

A Kautilyan View of India’s Non-Zero-Sum Game in the Neighbourhood
Aug 11, 2023

A Kautilyan View of India’s Non-Zero-Sum Game in the Neighbourhood

This brief seeks to apply ancient Indian strategic thought to the country’s approach towards its immediate neighbourhood. Employing a Kautilyan perspective on India’s allies within the broader framework of foreign policy end goals, it proposes a non-zero-sum view towards four of its neighbours: Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal. The brief classifies these neighbours based on the attitudes they exhibit and presents a nuanced approach tow

A landscape analysis of adolescent health in India: The case of Uttar Pradesh
Dec 11, 2019

A landscape analysis of adolescent health in India: The case of Uttar Pradesh

The health of adolescents is crucial to achieving India’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the Government of India has spotlighted adolescent health in various programmes and policies. However, substantial health challenges continue to affect Indian youth. This paper describes the health profile of adolescents in India and, in particular in Uttar Pradesh, one of the country’s least performing states in the domain of health outcomes.

Afghanistan: A story of US failure and mismanagement
Apr 25, 2014

Afghanistan: A story of US failure and mismanagement

As foreign troops begin to leave Afghanistan, criticism of the international coalition's handling of the war has been pouring in from all corners. A recent survey by the Pew Research Center for People and Press showed that a majority of the public does not think the US has achieved its goals in Afghanistan.

After Modi-Trump meet, India must proceed with caution
Jun 28, 2017

After Modi-Trump meet, India must proceed with caution

Modi’s remarks aimed to put across an India that was ready to synchronise itself with the Trump administration’s goals, but the US president made it clear he wanted India to commit to “free and fair trade”.

An assessment of India’s readiness for tracking SDG targets on Health and Nutrition
Feb 14, 2017

An assessment of India’s readiness for tracking SDG targets on Health and Nutrition

India’s endeavour to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a well-defined and time-bound manner is critical for national and global development. This paper examines India’s data availability to assess the SDGs related to health and nutrition. While India is still facing severe challenges of generating disaggregated information on mortality and cause-specific deaths, the desired data on nutrition and healthcare utilisation are la

An incomplete transformation: Multilateral development banks and the green infrastructure gap
Aug 17, 2023

An incomplete transformation: Multilateral development banks and the green infrastructure gap

The global effort to meet the targets set by the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the Sustainable Development Goals will depend crucially on reforming the structure of development finance. Mobilising private capital will be an essential part of this effort, and existing development finance institutions, led by the complex of multilateral development banks (MDBs), will have to re-orient their strategies and functioning to prioritise this mobi

Another shower for Pakistan
Oct 30, 2010

Another shower for Pakistan

What is bewildering is the stone silence on the part of ordinary Americans who are being hoodwinked by the Obama administration into believing that funnelling money and weapons to Pakistan's rogue military would help in winning strategic goals. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

As India Acts East, the Role of West Bengal
Apr 22, 2021

As India Acts East, the Role of West Bengal

This brief examines the role of West Bengal as a leverage for India to enhance its relations with its eastern and southeastern neighbours. It identifies the domestic and geo-economic aspirations of the state, and outlines the impact of certain misplaced policies and the state’s conflictual relationship with the union government on West Bengal’s development goals. The brief calls on India to nurture a pragmatic, cooperative brand of federalism

As India gears up for net neutrality 2.0, lessons from Ajit Pai’s ‘war on the open internet’
Aug 01, 2017

As India gears up for net neutrality 2.0, lessons from Ajit Pai’s ‘war on the open internet’

While the FCC and TRAI chairmen may share similar goals, India’s telecom regulator should pick and choose what it wants to take away from the US debate.

Assessing Biden’s Climate Agenda: Bold Promises, Slow Results
Aug 14, 2023

Assessing Biden’s Climate Agenda: Bold Promises, Slow Results

The Biden administration’s climate agenda is a crucial plank to restore American commitments to climate actions and reinstate US leadership globally. However, the agenda has been slow on results. Although the climate fight has been linked to most other federal goals, such as economy, jobs, infrastructure, and procurements, the Biden administration faces both domestic and external challenges that continue to limit how much it can achieve

Beijing at sea
Apr 24, 2013

Beijing at sea

The Chinese navy is leading the dramatic shift in the political goals of China's armed forces. Besides territorial defence, the Chinese armed forces now also aim to protect Beijing's expanding interests beyond borders, influence regional security politics and contribute to international peace.

Beyond Poverty Alleviation: Envisioning Inclusive Growth in the BRICS Countries
May 26, 2023

Beyond Poverty Alleviation: Envisioning Inclusive Growth in the BRICS Countries

This paper presents a status report of the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) on two crucial development parameters—inequality and poverty—that have a significant bearing on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs; especially SDG-1 and SDG-10). The paper tracks the origins and movements of absolute and relative poverty, and income and wealth inequality in the BRICS economies over time, highlights the associated cha

BIMSTEC and the fourth industrial revolution: The role of technology in regional development
May 24, 2023

BIMSTEC and the fourth industrial revolution: The role of technology in regional development

After a hiatus of almost two decades, the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) appears poised to once again assume significance in regional affairs. The renewed vigour has already resulted in a fresh agreement on tangible areas of cooperation and ways of resuscitating the organisation. This brief examines the role that will be played by technology and digital skilling in BIMSTEC’s goals toward

BIMSTEC countries and climate change: Imperatives for action
Jun 27, 2019

BIMSTEC countries and climate change: Imperatives for action

This brief discusses the climate change challenges facing the member states of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) and the initiatives taken by them to mitigate the effects. The South Asian countries within BIMSTEC are particularly vulnerable to global warming-induced weather variations that cause economic damage and loss of lives. At the same time, BIMSTEC economies have achieved impressiv

Blue Economy in the Indian Ocean: Governance perspectives for sustainable development in the region
Jan 18, 2019

Blue Economy in the Indian Ocean: Governance perspectives for sustainable development in the region

The Indian Ocean is vital to the economies, security and livelihoods of its littoral states. However, the economic and sustainable development issues in the rim are particularly challenging since the countries, with diverse political systems, development status and agendas, are home to one- third of the world’s population that rely extensively on the marine resources for sustenance, thereby subjecting the ocean’s resources to pressures from p

Breakout nation: The nutrition transformation of Bangladesh
Nov 08, 2019

Breakout nation: The nutrition transformation of Bangladesh

Bangladesh has not only become the second-fastest growing economy in South Asia, it has also made significant headway in reducing malnutrition. This success owes, in part, to nutrition-sensitive interventions, including provision of diversified foods, improved sanitation, and women’s empowerment. The country’s strategy of a multi-sector approach that scales up health and nutrition programmes for women, in particular, has shown consistent resu

Bridging the SDGs Financing Gap in Least Developed Countries: A Roadmap for the G20
Oct 27, 2023

Bridging the SDGs Financing Gap in Least Developed Countries: A Roadmap for the G20

Financing is a critical factor in realising the targets of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. In the decade of action (2021-2030), the least developed countries (LDCs) will be the battleground where the SDGs could be either won or lost. This paper estimates the level of SDG spending required in the LDCs, measures the current levels of domestic resource mobilisation and foreign aid and capital received by these countr

Bridging the SDGs Financing Gap: A Ten-Point Agenda for the G20
May 05, 2023

Bridging the SDGs Financing Gap: A Ten-Point Agenda for the G20

This brief discusses one of the most crucial challenges to effective global governance for development: bridging the financing gap for the UN Sustainable Development Goals. It considers the role of the G20 in addressing this gap, and outlines a 10-point action plan for the grouping. The aim is to bolster the financing required to achieve the SDGs in the next six and a half years—serving as an update to the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of 2015 in l

Building a Follow-up and Review Framework for India’s Sustainable Development Goal on Health
Jul 22, 2016

Building a Follow-up and Review Framework for India’s Sustainable Development Goal on Health

The creation of a competent national indicator framework will be central to the tracking — and eventual attainment — of India’s sustainable development goals. Through an analytical study of India’s past efforts relating to the MDGs and its initial preparations for the SDGs, this paper identifies specific hurdles that must be overcome in building a health indicator architecture that is both globally relevant and aligned with national

Building a Regional Approach to Energy Security for BIMSTEC
Aug 09, 2021

Building a Regional Approach to Energy Security for BIMSTEC

The seventh of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aims “to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all” by 2030. Such quest for energy security is echoed in subregional strategies as well; in the BIMSTEC region, it is a key priority. As the gap in electricity supply and demand increases in the countries of BIMSTEC, trans-border cooperation can help diversify energy sources, reduce the average cos

China Threat and the New Japanese Defence White Paper
Aug 16, 2011

China Threat and the New Japanese Defence White Paper

Japan's recently approved Defence White Paper has pointed out discomforting Chinese maritime activities in the region, military modernisation and the opacity about China's goals as challenges to Japan's national security.

China’s manned lunar ambitions: Strategic imperatives and implications
May 24, 2023

China’s manned lunar ambitions: Strategic imperatives and implications

China’s space policy planners are convinced that the country should aim for manned lunar landings by 2040. It has already established a sophisticated robotic lunar exploration programme and human landings are perceived as the logical next step. New navigation and communication architectures are being developed for this purpose, in addition to building life support systems and a suitable launch vehicle. However, China’s political leadership wo

Decoding India’s Priorities at the SCO: Connectivity, Counterterrorism, and Afghanistan
Aug 09, 2023

Decoding India’s Priorities at the SCO: Connectivity, Counterterrorism, and Afghanistan

As an emerging power in the current multipolar global order, India can use the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) to protect, promote, and project its geostrategic and geoeconomic interests. The SCO is also a platform for India to reaffirm its commitment to revive and deepen its centuries-old civilisational, spiritual, and cultural ties with other member countries. This paper explores India's priorities at the SCO, chiefly connectivity, coun

Decolonising Aid: Moving Beyond International Aid Intermediaries
Mar 18, 2024

Decolonising Aid: Moving Beyond International Aid Intermediaries

The international aid system is in need of reform. Despite rhetoric about localisation, a meagre 1.2 percent of international humanitarian aid directly reaches local actors. Overall, there is a lack of transparency and awareness in international policy circles on how funds flow from the donor level to the field. This brief argues that the issue is not just about a lack of capacity on the part of local actors—a sweeping statement often used by W

Development Cooperation Towards the SDGs: The India Model
Sep 30, 2022

Development Cooperation Towards the SDGs: The India Model

The Russia-Ukraine war has dealt a massive blow to a world already battered by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) appear farther from reach. The current global scenario demands greater international cooperation for development. Yet, development aid is increasingly getting more securitised, and the imperative is for the international community to leverage cooperation during the current Decade of Action fo

Eastern Ladakh, the Longer Perspective
Jun 14, 2021

Eastern Ladakh, the Longer Perspective

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

Emotions and Vote Choice: Perspectives from the US and India
Mar 02, 2021

Emotions and Vote Choice: Perspectives from the US and India

While the idea that emotional appeal is central to political persuasion may serve common intuition, the dynamics underscoring how and why this is so, remain underexplored. This primer collates insights from neuroscience and political psychology to show why emotions are essential to vote choice. It explores the effects of emotional appeals on voter perceptions using examples from campaign advertisements in US elections. The analysis finds that pol

Enhancing Blended Financing for a Sustainable Future: Challenges and Potential Solutions
Jul 10, 2023

Enhancing Blended Financing for a Sustainable Future: Challenges and Potential Solutions

An enormous amount of capital is required for climate change mitigation and adaptation globally, but especially in emerging markets that have the dual burden of achieving development and meeting national climate goals in the coming decades. Although it is tough to estimate the precise amount of capital required to achieve these goals, it is anticipated to be in the range of trillions of dollars. However, the flow of capital into green sec

Estimating the Productivity of India’s Agricultural Waters: Towards Water and Nutritional Security Through Crop Choices
Apr 05, 2022

Estimating the Productivity of India’s Agricultural Waters: Towards Water and Nutritional Security Through Crop Choices

This paper presents an approach towards promoting nutritional security on one hand, and water security on the other, in an integrated framework. Using econometric models, it delineates water use efficiency on the basis of calorific estimates of the productivity of agricultural water use in the context of various crops. Based on the estimated marginal product of water across the various crops, the paper finds that alternative crops such as maize a

Examining mobile banking as a tool for financial inclusion in India
Oct 30, 2018

Examining mobile banking as a tool for financial inclusion in India

Goals of universal financial inclusion have acquired new wings in India, with the mobile phone now seen as a catalyst in realising such aspirations. This brief analyses India’s performance in leveraging mobile phones for financial inclusion. It throws light not only on the various factors that have propelled the use of mobile banking, but also those that have served as obstacles for such use. The brief also proposes a strategy that has been dev

Exploring the blue in the India-France partnership
Feb 10, 2023

Exploring the blue in the India-France partnership

Their established ties rest on a foundation of common values and goals

Federalism is a reality, not a shibboleth
Mar 15, 2012

Federalism is a reality, not a shibboleth

Regional parties should not think of federalism merely in terms of anti-Congressism. This seems to be the tendency, with regional satraps like Mamata Banerjee and Jayalalithaa hyphenating regional concerns with their own political goals.

FIFA World Cup 2018: A look at how football became a force that could shape the world
Jun 29, 2018

FIFA World Cup 2018: A look at how football became a force that could shape the world

As the goals keep flowing, football continues to add verses to its confluences with geopolitics, identity, nationalism and globalisation. Over the years, the sport has consistently managed to hold a mirror to contemporary society.

Financing development: Fintech in Africa
Mar 22, 2019

Financing development: Fintech in Africa

In many African countries—some of the most unbanked areas in the world—digital banking applications are redefining what it is to bank in economies with shallow penetration of the formal banking sector, representing an innovative force that is breaking new ground in the long-standing challenge of financial inclusion. This brief explores the emerging world of fintech in the context of Africa, outlining why financial technology applications are

Financing for Agenda 2030: Deepening India-EU Development Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific
Feb 12, 2024

Financing for Agenda 2030: Deepening India-EU Development Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific

As the world confronts multiple challenges which are intricately connected, our path for development stands at a crucial juncture. In the context of the embroiling polycrisis, progress on the sustainable development goals (SDGs) has been steady but fragile with major and persistent challenges. Financing for Agenda 2030 has emerged as a major bottleneck with several developing economies, especially the least developed countries (LDCs), low-income

Financing India’s Green Transition
May 12, 2023

Financing India’s Green Transition

Climate change has emerged amongst India’s most formidable challenges to sustained GDP growth. To accelerate the implementation of the country’s commitments under the Paris Agreement and advance its progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals, finance is key. India needs to develop a comprehensive strategy and an integrated policy approach that aligns the country’s financial systems with the long-term needs of the economy while incor

Financing Regenerative Agricultural Practices: A Recommendation for BRICS
Sep 17, 2021

Financing Regenerative Agricultural Practices: A Recommendation for BRICS

The BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) have all declared their commitment to climate action and the implementation of the Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. This brief makes a case for BRICS, as a forum, to build a strategy for financing regenerative agriculture; key should be the creation of a joint fund. If implemented correctly, the brief argues, such a strategy of giving back to the land, instead of merel

Fiscal restructuring and its impact on nutrition financing in India
Aug 24, 2017

Fiscal restructuring and its impact on nutrition financing in India

In 2015, the United Nations agreed to end hunger in all forms by 2030. While India has committed itself as a stakeholder in the 2030 agenda for development, its own record in reducing hunger has been less than satisfactory. Latest data from the National Family Health Survey-4 show an improvement in nutritional indicators of children under-five. However, there are huge differences across states and social groups. Nutrition should thus remain high

Formulating open-space policies for India’s cities: The case of Mumbai
Apr 22, 2020

Formulating open-space policies for India’s cities: The case of Mumbai

Over the past decade, Mumbai’s civil society has raised concerns over the way in which the municipal corporation appears to be prioritising rapid development at the cost of the city’s public space. Indeed, the city has lost significant areas of its open spaces owing to various reasons, among them archaic policies, unrealistic goals, and the labyrinthine division of power and jurisdiction between the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and othe

Fulfilling the SDG on Zero Hunger: A Progress Report on BIMSTEC Nations
Nov 02, 2020

Fulfilling the SDG on Zero Hunger: A Progress Report on BIMSTEC Nations

The countries of BIMSTEC, or the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation, are working to translate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into action plans to ensure access to adequate and nutritious food. They are transforming their food systems based on their priorities and capacities to fulfill, in particular, the 2030 SDG Goal 2 that aims to “end hunger, achieve food security, and promote sustainable

G20 should have demonstrated power of numbers and guided future of climate governance
Jul 10, 2017

G20 should have demonstrated power of numbers and guided future of climate governance

The alignment of G20 policies with the Sustainable Development Goals, and emphasis on energy security, is high on India’s climate agenda.

Gender in the Waterscape: Creating Economic Ripples in India’s Labour Markets
Dec 13, 2023

Gender in the Waterscape: Creating Economic Ripples in India’s Labour Markets

This paper assesses the gendered division of labour for household-level domestic service activities, of which water management remains a primary component, across Indian states and the various dimensions of gender that are relevant in this context. Women have traditionally played an essential role in water management at the household level, devoting a significant share of their day to related unpaid domestic service activities. Such engagements o