PUDR’s report, Framed to Die: The Case of Stan Swamy, offers an exhaustive account of what lay behind Stan Swamy’s death in judicial custody in a private hospital on 5 July 2021
Is South Asia the Next Front in the U.S.–China Rivalry?
But it may be the smaller South Asian states that feel the most pressure. Countries such as Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and the Maldives are faced with a more polarised geopolitical environment. They want Chinese investment to boost development and keep close diplomatic and security ties with India and western partners.
Energy Cooperation: A Quiet Success Story in South Asia
A big development happened in 2025. Nepal started exporting electricity to Bangladesh through India's transmission network. This was the first time Nepalese hydropower was commercially transmitted to Bangladesh via Indian territory. The initial export volume was 40 megawatts. The significance of the agreement is much bigger. It showed that regional energy cooperation can overcome political barriers.
The Militarization of the Digital Commons: Need for New Regulatory Solutions
In the effort to combat this multi-dimensional challenge, democratic states are faced with deep policy constraints, many of which can be paralyzing. The fundamental paradox is how to maintain the open, democratic character of the digital commons while at the same time countering more advanced opponents who are not held back by democratic principles. Disseminating disinformation is a tactic governments use to influence public opinion that has the potential to conflict with the strong constitutional freedoms of expression that exist in liberal democracies.
Why the Bay of Bengal Is Becoming the Heart of Asian Geopolitics
The rising significance of the Bay links closely to the growing Indo-Pacific concept. As the economic and strategic focus shifts toward Asia, major powers like the United States, China, India, Japan, Australia, and the European Union are paying more attention to maritime corridors connecting the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
More on Student Forum
India needs to quicken speed of vaccination, targeted testing to control another Covid wave
The speed of inoculation across India should be increased by supplying the exact doses required by each state
India needs to package the idea of getting vaccinated as a national duty to defeat Covid
A proposed solution would be a multi-sectoral approach involving various stakeholders including the state governments, civil society and private sectors, as also the religious sectors that influence the beliefs of individuals, writes Abhinav Mehrotra for South Asia Monitor
Closer Russian ties with ASEAN will be a rebalancing factor for Asia
Moscow’s worries about India’s tilt towards a closer partnership with the US will complicate its relations with India and create an imbalance in its ties with China and other Asian countries as well
'Southern Bhutanese' diaspora demand revoking of Japanese award to former Bhutanese minister
Recently, 47 organizations all over the world sent a letter to Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga requesting him to roll back the decision to confer the award to Dago Tshering, accusing him of committing human rights abuses and suppression of democracy while he was in power in Bhutan
The Pegasus controversy: India can usher in surveillance reform through open government doctrines
One of the countries identified in the investigation, India, is considering a suite of data protection bills, which according to experts, currently does not contain any provisions related to surveillance reform
Spyware Pegasus looms large over civil liberties and demands global deployment standards
If people and institutions were targeted in India for specific political and personal motives, then it is a huge problem that goes to the very heart of individual civil liberties and hence democracy itself
A national security view of the Covid pandemic: India should initiate international criminal action against bio-warfare
India could take the lead in this once-in-generation catastrophe, rated by some as the worst man-made intentional disaster after the nuclear bombing of Japan
The thrills and sweet memories of a Kabul trip 20 years back
The moment they realized we were from “Hindustan,” there were cheerful smiles and greetings, with traders giving sugar-coated almonds and other dry fruits at discounted prices, and a regular query was whether we knew Amitabh Bachchan
Change in mindset, consistent policies are a must to realize Modi’s dream of India’s 'techade'
One solution could be to privatize the CSIR labs and convert them into a joint venture between private bodies and the government, which would lead to purposive and target-oriented, and time-bound research activities
US recognizes India as a leader in the Asia-Pacific region
The US relationship with Kolkata dates back to 1794 when the first US president George Washington appointed businessman Benjamin Joy as US Consul to Kolkata
Dilip Kumar: Some fond reminiscences of India's greatest actor
As Dilip Kumar, by a wide consensus India’s greatest mainstream actor, passed away at 98 on July 7, I think of the four interviews that I did with him through the mid-1980s and early 1990s
A Taliban-led Afghanistan could come under China’s control post US troop withdrawal
India could face a serious threat following a likely unholy axis between China, Pakistan and Taliban-led Afghanistan, as they all have the common aim of weakening India and disrupting the peace in the country
Role of women in leading Indian scientific research increasing
The involvement of women as science leaders in India seems to be increasing
India needs to unequivocally commit itself to QUAD
With Pakistan now almost at China’s mercy, India certainly faces a threat of aggression from these two countries acting together against India
