Unlike earlier jihadist cells dominated by Pakistani nationals, this unit deliberately recruits women from Indonesia, the Philippines, Uzbekistan, and other foreign countries. Reason behind recruiting non-Pakistani nationals serves a dual purpose: it complicates attribution and shields Pakistan’s security apparatus from direct accountability. Such operational sophistication reflects ISI’s continued role not merely as a passive enabler but as an active architect of jihadist adaptation.
South Asia has the potential to be a global digital leader. It has a young population and a booming tech industry. However, this potential will only be realized if the region is secure. We must treat cybersecurity as a pillar of national security, just like border defense. This requires better technology, smarter laws, and stronger regional ties. The digital threats of 2026 are fast and complex. To meet them, South Asia must be faster and more united. The time to build a collective digital shield is now, before the next major crisis occurs.
Yet the strategic costs are real. Reduced engagement in Bangladesh risks ceding influence at a moment when Dhaka is actively diversifying its partnerships. Hesitation over Chabahar weakens India’s leverage in Iran and Central Asia and underscores its vulnerability to US pressure even as it seeks a more multipolar foreign policy. The 2026–27 Budget does not signal a dramatic shift in Indian foreign policy. There is no abandonment of neighbours-first rhetoric or of connectivity-led diplomacy. What it reveals instead is a narrowing circle of feasible economic action.
The ideals of 1971 represent inclusivity, human dignity, and resistance to oppression. Baul and Sufi traditions reject radical views and promote humanism and coexistence. Islam in Bengal arrived largely through Sufis—from Persia, Arabia, and Central Asia—who emphasized spirituality, tolerance, and accommodation. These traditions resonated with local Hindu practices and gave rise to syncretic forms such as Baul philosophy. Rabindranath Tagore and Nazrul Islam embodied this civilizational synthesis.
The events in Nepal and Bangladesh serve as stark warnings: the US Deep State and its Islamist partners are actively destabilizing South Asia, targeting democracies and turning vulnerable nations into vassal states. Nepal narrowly avoided disaster thanks to the courage and foresight of its army, while Bangladesh remains trapped in a jihadist nightmare.
New Delhi should not view cricket ties as appeasement but as investment in peace. By embracing cricket diplomacy, India can show moral leadership, protect its strategic interests and give millions of fans across South Asia a reason to dream of friendship rather than enmity. The ongoing Asia Cup is a good start in that direction. A few handshakes could have made it an even better start.
For India, the situation will remain volatile, as it shares a thousand-mile open border with Nepal permitting free movement of people. The coup in Nepal came as a surprise to India and Indian intelligence agencies, just like the coups in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh
Muhammad Yunus may bask in the applause of Western elites, but within Bangladesh his regime is a study in failure: illegitimate, incompetent, and dangerous. Nepal, with its army’s timely intervention and youth’s surprising maturity, showed that chaos need not consume a nation. Bangladesh, under Yunus, has shown the opposite: how a nation can betray its own future when it allows passion without perspective to rule the day.
We are well on our way to sealing the ozone hole. But let us ensure that in doing so, we do not ignore the new fissures opening at our feet. The work of healing our planet is never complete—it simply evolves.Let our legacy be that we were wise enough to see the whole board, not just the move we just made. The ozone hole is being sealed, but the deal is not done. The lesson is not over. The action must continue—even in celebration.
For the Indian government, the interim Karki administration offers a valuable interlocutor who understands both the cultural and strategic sensitivities of bilateral relations. Supporting her government’s limited but crucial agenda aligns with New Delhi’s interest in maintaining regional stability, securing cross-border trade, and containing potential Chinese inroads into Nepal’s political and economic life.
The Pokhara International Airport has become emblematic of systemic failure. A 2025 parliamentary investigation uncovered Rs14 billion (USD 105 million) in corruption and irregularities, including fake payments, unauthorized tax waivers for the Chinese contractor, and disbursements for incomplete infrastructure. Yet, senior officials remain largely untouchable—even ministers accused of human trafficking.
After the overthrow of governments in the South Asian countries of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, the Nepalese crisis has consequences not just for the nation of 30 million people, but for the whole region, rooted in the country’s own turbulent political history and its legacy of attempting to balance ties between India, China and Pakistan.
Nepal, one of the world’s poorest countries, struggles with the South Asian region’s lowest per capita income and an unemployment rate approaching 13 percent, according to official estimates.
Many in the Global South as well as key South Asian allies—including Nepal and Sri Lanka—are closely observing India’s approach towards macroeconomic stability. How India moves forward in the months and years to come will signal whether it emerges as a resilient regional rule-shaper or a reactive follower in the evolving financial system.
Much of Washington’s tough posture stems from India’s reluctance to deepen its role in the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad). During his October 2024 visit to Tokyo, Jaishankar rejected Japanese Foreign Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s proposal for an “Asian NATO,” reaffirming India’s non-aligned stance. This slowed efforts to create a NATO-style architecture in the Indian Ocean, frustrating Washington.
The stakes extend far beyond a single disrupted meeting or a dozen wrongful arrests. They concern whether Bangladesh will continue down the path of political mimicry, repeating the sins of the Awami League era under a different banner, or whether it can genuinely chart a new course—one in which dissent is not criminalized, mobs are not emboldened, and courts are not politicized.
Regionally, Pakistan is face-to-face with water insecurity, that too at a time when strained ties with India have led to abeyance of the Indus Water Treaty and Pakistan’s dependence on those waters continues. To the northwest, Afghanistan also keeps pressing for its increasing dependence on the Indus waters due to its landlocked geographic location. This keeps ties with Afghanistan strained.
If India is treated as an independent balancer, global multipolarity becomes stable. If the West instead tries to “arm-twist” India, it only drives India closer to Russia–China alignment. A respected, autonomous India helps prevent both Western hegemony and China-centric hegemony — creating a truly balanced order.
Two demographic shifts are increasingly seen to be transforming global economies and labour markets: aging and declining working-age populations, predominantly in the developed economies, and expanding working-age populations, predominantly in the less developed economies.
