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A wave of pre-election violence, intimidation and destruction unleashed by Naxalites of the People¿s War Group (PWG) has been continuing in the post election phase in the central Indian State of Chhattisgarh. Legislative Assembly polls were held there on December 1, 2003. Polling could not be held in parts of Konta constituency, Dantewada district,
Decentralisation, with all its limitations, is the way to go for India to make the state effective in fulfillment of its sovereign functions.
Ahead of the Paris climate summit, India announced on October 2 its INDCs for climate change mitigation and adaptation. While this commitment has drawn fulsome praise from many, the green ayatollahs have predictably ignored its herculean clean energy ambitions and focused on Indian dependence on coal. It is time to lay bare the 'coal hypocrisy' of these privileged 'western greens'.
With barely two weeks left, there is still no clarity on the details of the forthcoming elections in Nigeria. Will Nigeria hold Presidential elections on February 14 and the Governors of the States poll on February 28 as scheduled?
As Yemen's two-year transitional period comes to an end, there is increased anticipation regarding Yemen's future. Main points of contention in the National Dialogue Conference (NDC) were pertaining to the solutions to the southern issue.
Through most of the Cold War and for over a decade after it ended, the phrase that best described Indo-US relations was ¿estranged democracies¿, coined by Dennis Kux, a former US diplomat. The two democracies, the world¿s largest and the world¿s most populous, regarded each other with wary suspicion.
As India tries to achieve the goal of making smart cities that offer smart mobility, valuable lessons can be learned from existing practices.
More than the growth of the Indian diaspora in Australia or two-way commerce, the potential for naval cooperation and reshaping the political geography of the Indo-Pacific excites the relationship's strategic proponents.
Japan-Thailand relations are understated, yet dynamic and continuing to evolve. The two have worked towards fortifying their ties across various sectors, including defence, investments, and energy, undergirded by a mutual commitment to regional stability and economic prosperity. A paramount interest is navigating the geopolitical complexities of the times, amid growing external threats that necessitate deeper security cooperation comprising bilat
Since cities have little control over automobile policy, they must accommodate more automobiles within their geographical limits by employing better p
Will the world end up underwriting the further rise of China by allowing the CPC to take over global institutions?
Undersea cables must be understood as critical infrastructure, and their vulnerability – to intentional tampering and accidental damage – acknowledged.
Trends in Africa are diverging. While East Africa shows growing signs of authoritarianism and suppression of dissent, in Southern Africa — liberatio
Amidst the prolonged Russia-Ukraine war, the continuing attention being given by the United States (US) to the Indo-Pacific region has been remarkable, belying widespread expectations that it would refocus its resources. This brief posits that the US interest in its Indo-Pacific strategy has not diminished as the region continues to represent an important pillar of overall US geostrategy. Its involvement in the region is not simply being
American conservatism’s push for unilateralist solutions outweighs the imperfect solution of the equalisation levy
Last month, the security forces of Bangladesh unearthed the existence of a new terrorist group called Ansar Ullah Bangla. The discovery of this group surprised many since the country for a few years has been having an active counter-terror operation in place.
After Doklam, China seems to want to ‘expose’ once again how India’s Quad allies are concerned only about the shared waters of the Indo-Pacific
For India to become a part of the global value chains, a better intellectual property regime is needed. Further, India needs to take measures to be a part of the mega regionals which are going to shape the future of global trade architecture such as TPP and RCEP.
A pandemic of the viral disease COVID-19 has reached millions of people around the world with significant rates of mortality. With no specific treatments or vaccines in the immediate horizon, limiting contact with infected persons, the use of masks, and hand hygiene offer the only mitigation for now. This has led most countries to adopt severe isolation measures, which have in turn caused disruption of economic activity and increased unemployment
Dr. Sergey Kurginyan noted that the world at present faces the threat of descending into a vortex of chaos and whoever succeeds in managing this chaos effectively will be able to take control of the future of the international system as the new hegemon.
To understand the different perspectives of the UK and India on the evolving situation in Afghanistan and the implications of the Arab Spring, Observer Research Foundation organised an interaction with experts from the Foreign Commonwealth Office on March 21, 2013.
Pakistan is often accused of being a state sponsor of terrorism. This article bases itself in the belief that though the problem of ?Jihadism? may well have originated from some of Pakistan?s security paranoias, it is now assuming proportions far larger than Pakistan itself. At this stage, Jihadism will be a problem for Pakistan itself as much as for the rest of the world. At the same time, the ability of the Pakistani state to counter this pheno
The Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM) Economic Corridor (EC) has been receiving increased public attention in the last few months because of a strong push by China. When implemented, the project promises mega cites, infrastructure, jobs and better living standards for people living in its fold. Is the BCIM EC really a gamechanger? Or will this project, like others proposed by China under its One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative, result in
As Biden draws on the experience of the 2018 midterms to expand his appeal with women, Trump is prioritising mobilisation — and not persuasion, for
India can further consolidate its stature as the “pharmacy of the world,” despite the jury still being out on HCQ’s effectiveness.
India is currently facing a massive exports slowdown, one of its worst in recent years. Exports slumped for the 13th consecutive month in December 2015 by 15 percent and major exported goods from India have shown negative growth. Half the story relates to external forces: as global growth slows down, India's export markets contract, too. The other half, however, is a story of supply: for many reasons-lack of infrastructure, amongst them-India has
The state of Pakistan, dominated by Punjabis, has responded to Baloch nationalism with brutal methods of suppression
Sri Lanka, which in the 1970s was being hailed as a development success story for a low-income nation, is now mired in a financial and economic disaster, its worst yet since independence in 1948. Despite notable investments in infrastructure projects, and a largely stable growth rate from 2013 to 2019, the Sri Lankan story was marred by a series of untimely and mismanaged economic measures that led to the current meltdown. External factors have c
Observer Research Foundation and the Experimental Creativity Centre (ECC), Moscow, completed the second leg of their collaborative research project on the theme "Understanding the Emerging Contours of Power and Hegemony - Contemporary Geo-political Narratives" in New Delhi on March 15-16, 2010.
Among the estimated 1.3 billion people across the world who have no access to electricity, 70 percent are women. This brief discusses the impact of energy poverty on India’s rural women. As women are primarily responsible for securing food and energy for their family, they are the ones who are worst affected by the lack of access to clean and modern energy. The brief calls for a more holistic approach in research and policymaking on energ
This brief analyses the impacts of the withdrawal of the United States’ Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) programme on India’s exports, domestic production and employment.[1] Until 5 June 2019, when the GSP withdrawal came into effect, India was the largest beneficiary of the GSP of which it had been part since 1974. A decline in exports to the US was anticipated as items under zero-tariff rate were subjected to a higher rate after wi
Radicalisation is a spectrum graph where the mass of non-violent extremists have accumulated at the bell curve on the horizontal axis. A smaller numbe
Various explanations have been proffered for Chinese President Xi Jinping’s renewed emphasis on ideology. The popular narratives attribute it to either Xi’s power ambitions, or a reaction rooted in his personal trauma during the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s. Meanwhile, an alternative discourse projects the rise of ideology politics as a response to a possible legitimacy crisis facing the Communist Party of China (CPC). This paper weighs i
Four months since the outbreak of COVID-19, some vital unknowns about the pandemic remain, including IFR (Infection Fatality Rate) and immunity from reinfection. A clearer understanding of the risks posed by COVID-19, informed by science and data in the Indian context, will help the country in mustering an effective strategy to hurdle the crisis. The government must undertake mass antibody testing and scale up healthcare capacity across the count
The recognition of Community Conserved Areas will enable a process-oriented approach towards achieving the targets under the Global Biodiversity Frame
Most experts who attended the focus group discussion on the situation in Pakistan at ORF felt that South Punjab is going to be next stronghold of terrorism in Pakistan
The shortage of manpower in Russia, along with the allure of higher wages and citizenship, continue to serve as pull factors for migrants from South A
In many countries across the world, democracy and political violence can be inseparable. Even the most advanced western democracies have not escaped this pitfall. For the young republic that is India, political violence is commonly linked to electoral politics and in many instances, is episodic. States such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Kerala, for example, have had a long history of violent incidents erupting during elections. West Bengal
With its emphasis on decreasing India’s ICT import duties across the board, the US is in a way batting with China against India, not realising that
While Trump attempts to expand his base from blue-collar whites to suburban white voters, Biden’s courtship of that crucial voting block stands ecli
Some observers believe after closely watching the activities of Anna Hazare and his civil society team that it is nothing short of the beginning of a political movement for changing the Government. Only time will tell whether such thinking is right or wrong.
Whatever be MA Jinnah's connection with Aligarh Muslim University, penniless refugees who came to India post-Partition deserve better than to once again be faced with religious zealots who are keen on putting Jinnah on a pedestal that he is most undeserving of
Both India and Pakistan would have reasons to be satisfied with the joint statement issued at the end of President General Pervez Musharraf's visit to New Delhi from April 16 to 18, 2005, for talks with our Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh.
Historical issues straining Japan-Korea ties have severely limited the two countries to leverage their strategic and economic convergences to strengthen their partnership which could contribute a lot for regional peace and stability.
In Geneva UNHRC session, while West resolution against Sri Lanka, that satisfied none - possibly starting with the movers and shakers of the world that the US and Europe think they are - managed to muster 23 votes, those 'not in favour' added up to a higher 24, comprising 12 against and 12 'abstentions'
