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The author argues that to revitalise and strengthen their relationship Germany must meet India eye-to-eye at a time when democracy is threatened globally by authoritarian diplomacy.

It is increasingly becoming clear that the battle is less about the trade deficit and more about America’s intention of preserving its global primacy.

Xi has been steadily accumulating and centralising power ever since he took office as General Secretary in November 2012 and President in March 2014.

India has a long history of nurturing a social welfare regime whereby material goods are distributed to the poor and vulnerable populations of the country, helping uplift their socio-economic condition. However, many of such welfare goods are often called ‘hand-outs’ or ‘freebies’ that are promised or delivered based on electoral considerations; they are widely viewed as manipulative, aimed only at influencing electorates. The mas

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities constantly evolve, its regulation can no longer remain simply an exercise in optimisation and mitigation—or maximising innovation opportunities and minimising the risk of harm. AI’s intersecting socio-economic and legal implications require dynamic governance arrangements to identify, respond to, and anticipate continually shifting regulatory imperatives. This report makes a case for a framework th

There is a lot to feel hopeful about the maiden meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan President Pervez Musharaff in distant New York. If the two nations needed to move ahead with the peace process, set in motion by predecessor Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh needed the personal chemistry working with Musharaff. At the end of the day, both said it did work.

आर्टिफ़िशियल इंटेलिजेंस (AI) की क्षमताएं चूंकि लगातार विकसित हो रही हैं, इसलिए इसका विनियमन अब केवल अनुकूलन (ऑप्टमाइज़ेशन) और न्यूनीकरण (मिटिगेशन) की कवायद नहीं रह सकता है – �

Relations between India and Australia have reached a new maturity, based on deepening connections between their societies, economies, education sectors and policy establishments. This positions these two democracies well to work together to advance their interests in a shared Indo-Pacific region.

In 2016, the Indian government cleared the Model Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Services) Act, allowing retail establishments to remain open throughout the day and night. Proponents say that when fully implemented, the act will drive nighttime economy and, in turn, increase cities’ incomes. In the past few years, certain states have begun implementing such concept of “24×7 cities”, including Mumbai, Ah

This brief studies India’s foreign policy preferences using an index based on historical voting patterns of member states at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). By visualising the trajectory of policy preferences for all member states in the UNGA, with a particular focus on India, this work identifies how India’s policy stance at the UN has evolved in relation to its peers. It finds that Indian policy has maintained an exceptionally h

What structural and conceptual frameworks need to be adopted to achieve its climate pledges? 

India and France must start looking together at the region and the world. A Franco-Indian vision document could be a vital first step towards developing a cooperative framework for stability and security in the region. And the relationship must be purposeful, nimble and creative.

Narendra Modi is a post-Partition Prime Minister who has no family history linking him directly to the event. This could work to his advantage if he chooses to take a less emotional and more logical approach to the Indo-Pak relationship.

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

The Land Boundary Agreement between India and Bangladesh will strengthen cooperation on border management. The two countries should not only cooperate with each other in controlling cross-border crimes, but also work on improving the lives of the people on the border by encouraging cross-border trade.

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.

Ensuring contestability and fairness in India’s digital market—one of the world’s most prominent—is critical to ensuring consumer welfare. This paper outlines a legal and regulatory framework that can ensure contestability and fairness in the Indian digital market.  The paper identifies the following elements of this toolkit: (i) competition law; (ii) ex-ante regulation for digital gatekeepers; (iii) laws for increased transparen

The coincidence is striking. The US ¿ban¿ on ¿non-participants¿ in the ¿international coalition¿ to participate in $ 18-billions worth of ¿works contract¿ for Iraq¿s reconstruction, and also the follow-up talks on the deadlocked WTO negotiations at Cancun. Between them, the two may have begun designing a new course for politics and cooperation in the international arena, where economy now has a major say.

Global powers like the United States and China have spared little effort in attempting to shape the digital age in their image. At the same time, other powers like Japan and France, and emerging ones like India aim to play a part in building the global digital ecosystem. These latter three share similar values: democracy, freedom of speech, open access to digital resources, and sovereignty. They all desire to keep the digital commons intact and n

A new social contract between citizens, consumers, employees, the state, and enterprise is needed to delineate a new understanding around rights, responsibilities and entitlements. Digital  transformations  are  rapidly  altering  the  nature  of  work,  models  of employment,    contracts,    regulations    and    protections.    Increasingly,    the responsibilities  of the state are becoming the obligations  of,�

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic hastened the widespread adoption of digitaltechnologies across the globe. The pace of digitalisation—from the micro levels ofeducation and e-commerce to the macro levels of supply chains and productionnetworks—has galvanised governments to advance digital regulations. Thetightrope walk of creating policies that enable digital innovation and ensureregulations are in the larger public interest have led to inte

The European Union (EU) stands at a critical junction in its institutional evolution. The European sovereign debt crisis in 2009, the Brexit decision in 2016, and the success of anti-European populist parties in many member states have triggered intense discussions about necessary reforms in the Union, which only intensified after Emmanuel Macron became president of France in 2017. His vehemently pro-European outlook and ambitious suggestions for

Despite one-fourth of people living away from where they were born, no arrangements exist for domestic work migrants to vote from where they work. But enthusiasm abounds for facilitating NRIs to do so.

Last week India hosted two important visitors – Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, and the US special presidential envoy for climate John Kerry. These were routine visits, one to lay the groundwork for a potential Russian presidential visit to India and the other to assess Indian intentions on climate

The different service arms of China’s armed forces are all undergoing substantial transformation, including exploring the possibilities of integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) to boost their combat power and effectiveness especially in a time of war. This paper evaluates the significance and potential of AI in improving China’s military capabilities. Chinese official documents and their enunciation of military doctrine indicate that the c

The geographical and socioeconomic characteristics of small island developing states (SIDS) expose them to unique challenges. Climate change, in particular, poses a severe threat to SIDS, with rising sea levels, ocean acidification, and changing precipitation patterns negatively affecting their ecosystems, economies, and communities. This brief assesses the challenges faced by SIDS in accessing traditional climate financing and analyses the effec

Area states should work together to address security concerns

The change in leadership in Kabul has provided a new opportunity for the US and Afghanistan to work together. Media reports suggesting a larger role for the United States post-2014 than originally envisaged have been doing the rounds for the better part of the past six months.

Nawaz Sharief's election for an unprecedented third time as Pakistan's prime minister has been welcomed by the Afghan government. Afghan President Hamid Karzai congratulating Sharief called upon the new Pakistani government to enhance cooperation in order to work towards a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Afghanistan.

During the UPA years, Delhi often proclaimed itself as a "net security provider" in the Indian Ocean and beyond. Modi has certainly put security cooperation at the very heart of his regional diplomacy. But the institutional framework in Delhi for such cooperation remains to be developed.

The Observer Research Foundation’s first Tech Huddle was held on 23 November 2023 and focused on the governance of artificial intelligence (AI) in India, highlighting the rapid growth and adoption of AI as well as the complexities associated with developing regulatory frameworks for it. AI governance is in its infancy, both globally and in India, and grapples with issues such as the explainability of AI systems as well as the embedded biases, s

Delhi, a Union Territory that is home to India’s capital, New Delhi, is among the world’s urban agglomerations with the most toxic air. The magnitude of air pollution is massive. It causes devastating impacts on people’s health, the city’s environment, and economic well-being. Despite overwhelming evidence of the severity of air pollution and its consequences, however, India’s policy measures remain weak. This paper identifies the most

India and the US face a growing anti-access challenge. By working together to mitigate A2/AD threats, both the countries may come to a better mutual understanding on major security issues in Asia.

We will see the rise of a New World Order driven by national interest, reliability of partners, and of course, economic factors. India has to use a “Gated Globalisation” framework to negotiate this change.

Narendra Modi has much work ahead.

The paper provides an understanding of high flows in a river system by explaining the hydro-meteorological, hydro-geomorphological, ecological and socio-economic dimensions of monsoon-related high-flows in the Ganga-Padma river system straddling India and Bangladesh. The aim is to inform the existing flood management approach in India, which has failed to adequately incorporate the geomorphic, hydrologic, hydraulic and biological processes of riv

This paper explores the impact of India’s federal architecture, particularly its tax-sharing structure and system of fiscal transfers, on the state of the country’s healthcare. It examines the existing system of intergovernmental transfers and pays particular attention to the Fourteenth Finance Commission’s new devolution framework that has enhanced the previously constrained fiscal spaces of states. This, in turn, will likely have implicat

India should work more closely with the members of the US Congress in order to strengthen the strategic relationship between the two largest democracies in the world.

The US Congressional Staff was pointed out that though Pakistan's political machinery is willing to work with all parties, including India, on Afghanistan, the army apparatus and the ISI still remains a liability. These factors must be taken into account while US deals with Pakistan.

Hamburg wants to go completely car free in the next ten years, and it wants to achieve it by networking all its green Space creating a new paradigm of walkable and cycleable urbanity.

The kidnapping of two Chinese engineers working in an irrigation project in South Waziristan in the Federally-Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of Pakistan by a group of pro-Osama bin Laden jihadi terrorists last week and the death of one of them on October 13,2004,

Baiting Pakistan into increasing its duplicity in its dealings with Nato, India has effectively provided the West with a convenient scapegoat. Come 2014, the historical narrative will more likely focus on betrayal rather than the reality of the West's bad homework and flawed assumptions.

The National Security Initiative of the Observer Research Foundation held a workshop to examine the relevance of the Army Aviation Corps. This report details the outcome of a discussion amongst prominent defence personnel.

Artificial intelligence (AI) can improve various aspects of healthcare. It can help reduce annual expenditure,[1] allow early detection of diseases, provide round-the-clock monitoring for chronic disorders, and help limit the exposure of healthcare professionals in contagious environments. The use of AI in healthcare systems in Africa, in particular, can eliminate inefficiencies such as misdiagnosis, shortage in healthcare workers, and wait and

The AI-climate change link is understudied, not least because the largest companies working in this space are neither transparent nor meaningfully committed to understanding it