“The growing capabilities of terrorist and other non-State groups to access delivery systems like missiles and unmanned/uncrewed aerial systems [drones] have compounded the risks of terrorism using WMDs”, the Indian representative said.
Rethinking Climate Security in South Asia - Through AI
South Asia’s climate risks are shared across countries. Rivers such as the Ganga, Brahmaputra and Indus do not respect national boundaries, and torrential rains in one country can lead to floods in another. Satellite data, flood forecasts and flood warnings could, therefore, be shared to enhance disaster preparedness across the region.
When the Himalayas Warn Us: Balancing Ecology, Development and Human Security
The disasters at Kedarnath and Nepal should therefore be read not simply as tragedies of the past or isolated episodes of extreme weather. They are warnings from a changing mountain system. The question before South Asia is whether we will continue to respond to each disaster after it occurs, or whether we will listen to what the mountains are telling us beforehand.
Months Ahead of the Monsoon: Can AI Give Us an Earlier Warning About El Niño?
AI may genuinely extend the horizon over which seasonal climate risk can be estimated. For communities across South Asia living under the influence of the monsoon, a longer view could mean the difference between a farmer adjusting her planting in time and a family receiving a flood warning too late to act.
Livelihoods, Employment and Environmental Management in South Asia’s Hilly Regions: Lessons from ADB’s New Investment in Bangladesh
The broader lesson for South Asia is equally important. Hilly regions cannot be developed simply by transferring lowland infrastructure models into mountainous terrain. Investment has to respond to local economic systems, geography and environmental risks.
More on Climate, Sustainability and Energy
TTP is a persistent threat to Pakistan's security, warns UN report, as TTP makes impossible demands on Islamabad
The report comes amid ongoing peace talks between the TTP and the Pakistan government as the violence has increased since August last year. Earlier attempts of peace talks, mediated by the Afghan Taliban, had failed to produce any significant result. This year alone, the TTP carried out 46 attacks, mostly targeting security forces, and killed 79 people, according to the Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies data.
India votes for US-sponsored UNSC resolution to raise North Korea sanctions; China, Russia veto it
Without naming the two countries, India’s Permanent Representative T. S. Tirumurti told the Council on March 25, “India also believes that there is a pressing need to address the proliferation of nuclear and missile technologies related to DPRK (North Korea) in our region. These linkages have an adverse impact on peace and security in the region, including on India”.
Taliban must reverse restrictions on women in Afghanistan, respect human rights, urges UN special envoy
At a press conference in Kabul on Thursday, the UN envoy said that the advancing erasure of women from public life was especially concerning and urged the authorities to immediately reverse policies and directives that negatively impact women and girls.
Bangladesh’s explanation in enforced disappearance cases ‘insufficient’, says UN working group
Bangladesh’s move to respond to the UN group’s queries came almost two months after the US State Department sanctioned seven top serving and retired RAB officials in December last year, citing human rights violations and other abuses by it, a move that was viewed very disapprovingly by Dhaka as an unfriendly act.
UN refugee chief visits Bangladesh, seeks continued international support for Rohingyas
For Bangladesh, the challenges of hosting the Rohingyas are only growing amid the resource crunch, a growing rate of crimes, and drug smuggling in the refugee camps.
UN to honor four Nepali peacekeepers posthumously
Nepal is the second largest contributor of uniformed officers to UN Peacekeeping, as over 5,700 of its military and police personnel are deployed to the UN operations in different conflict zones, according to the United Nations.
UNSC expresses ‘deep concern’ over the erosion of rights and freedom in Afghanistan
Recent reports showed how inspectors from the Taliban’s moral policing ministry had now intensified patrolling around public spaces like malls, bazaars, and other places, enforcing their socially conservative codes.
India offers to host UNSC counter-terror panel meet on misuse of new technologies
Tirumurti spoke of the dangers from terrorist exploitation of the new financial technologies like virtual currencies, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that create monetary value out of non-physical entities, crowd-funding platforms and new payment methods like prepaid phone cards, mobile payments and online payment systems
India assures countries 'most in need', says at UN it will provide food aid despite export controls
India “has never been found wanting” when it came to helping countries in distress, whether it was the Covid pandemic or conflicts. “We have provided food aid in the form of thousands of metric tonnes of wheat, rice, pulses, and lentils to several countries, including our neighbourhood and Africa, to strengthen their food security”, he said
India retains top spot as fastest-growing major economy, says UN report, even as South Asia outlook deteriorates
South Asian countries faced risks from higher prices and shortages of farming inputs including fertilisers, it said. “This will probably result in weaker harvests and exert further upward pressures on food prices in the near term”, according to the WESP
Food security fears: US hopes India will drop restrictions on wheat exports; India assures ‘neighbors and vulnerable countries’
India, which is the world’s second-largest wheat grower and has a big stockpile, ordered an end to most purely commercial wheat transactions, while leaving room for some exports to neighbouring countries and governments of countries in need
Modi highlights traditional medicine's role in fighting Covid, says India vaccinated 90% of Indian adults
Giving a progress report on vaccinations, Modi said that India’s programme is the largest in the world hving fully vaccinated almost 90 per cent of the adult population, and more than 50 million children
India contributes USD 800,000 to expading Hindi language use at UN
While Hindi is yet to be one of UN’s official languages, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made sure he uses the medium to promote the language on international platforms, including the UN
UN chief calls for dialogue to resolve Sri Lanka‘s crisis
“We've also been concerned about the recent violence against peaceful protesters, and we urge calm and restraint, as well as respect for democratic rights, including the right... the freedom of expression and the right to peaceful assembly”, the spokesman said
