Congress CM candidate Gaurav Gogoi and Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma campaigning

Assam Elections: Of Identity Politics, Development Spectacles and Voter Disillusionment

There is also a subtle but perceptible fatigue with the continued reliance on polarisation as a political tool. Identity-based mobilisation, while effective in the short term, risks diminishing returns when overused. If these undercurrents - internal dissent, governance gaps, and narrative fatigue - begin to converge, they may not immediately overturn electoral outcomes, but they could signal the early stages of a more substantive political challenge to the BJP

AI171 Crash Probe: India Owes the truth to the 260 who Died and Their Families

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be cognizant of the fact that the crash occurred in Ahmedabad, in his home state. People will come to their own conclusions as to whether they saw Modi standing up to American pressure or give in. India has not forgotten the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, that Warren Anderson and Union Carbide Chemicals went scot-free, that India settled for a meagre $470 million compensation – 25 years later – for the families of the thousands who died and the millions who were adversely affected.

Whither Commitment to Truth? How AI, Media, and Visuals Shape Our Sense of Threat

The social media takes advantage of the reward systems in the brain, especially the dopamine circuits within the basal ganglia and the prefrontal cortex. Using signals of micro-engagement, including the duration of time a user hovers over a video or the number of times a user rewatches a clip, algorithms develop a feedback loop that over time redirects the feed of a user to more intense or provocative content.

To Mediate - or not to Mediate: Not Necessary for India to be at Head of Table at Peace Talks

To step into the role of mediator in a conflict of this nature would inevitably test that balance. It would invite scrutiny, of intent, of tilt, of perceived bias. Even the most well-intentioned effort could be interpreted through the prism of existing relationships. In such a situation, neutrality is not merely a matter of policy; it becomes a matter of perception, and perceptions are notoriously difficult to manage.

More on Perspective

Unique military-industry cooperation boosting Indian Navy’s warship production

There are currently 41 ships and submarines under construction, 39 are being built in Indian shipyards, while in-principle approval is there from the Defence Ministry for 47 ships to be built in India.

Is war an inevitability? How prepared should India be?

The author’s prognosis of a major contestation in the not-so-distant future is situated in the South China Sea. The compelling logic portends China’s proclivity to fight one or possibly two major wars before 2035, either with Taiwan or India before the major US-China war.

Can a 'self-reliant' India edge out Vietnam as an alternative to China for supply chain manufacturing?

Riding the global strategic shift in manufacturing, India is on the cusp of attractive large-scale domestic and foreign investors by incentivizing supply chain manufacturing

A blueprint for a developed India

It would be appropriate to design a comprehensive plan for India to create 10,000 unicorns in the next 25 years and with a few hundred becoming decacorns - enterprises with a valuation of over $10 billion. These enterprises alone could add over $12 trillion to India’s GDP.

South Asian solidarity and support for flood-devastated Pakistan: Calling South Asian nations to come together for flood relief and rehabilitation in the neighbourhood

It is important to note that India has sufficient food stocks to be able to help the affected people in flood-ridden Pakistan. There is an urgent need to ease border restrictions at least to the levels of 2009 to provide easy access to food and relief materials

Checking anti-India activity in Assam and Northeast India

While the Assam government must sustain its present moves against radicalisation, New Delhi must be firm in ensuring that insidious attempts/activities by anti-Indian elements/groups are neutralised effectively in the Northeast, Jammu and Kashmir and some other states

The world's fifth largest economy: A reality check

So, the assessment for the fifth largest economy is that this is a slowing phase, as growth drivers need to pick up along with investor sentiment

Developing unity in diversity: A prescription to unite India culturally

Efforts should be made to translate the literary heritage of each state and union territory into each of the national languages of India. This will create a whole new education, employment and business ecosystem in the publishing and media industries, sensitising each Indian to the national and civilisational heritage they inherited and building a sense of unity and common purpose.

Sealing the Ozone Hole: Lessons from the Montreal Protocol

The progress of the Montreal Protocol till now is, however, not without hiccups and bumps

INS Vikrant in its new incarnation marks India as a major warship-building nation

 

Both these carriers, which are floating cities with massive flying and firepower, still do not adequately fulfill India’s maritime force requirement. With two vast seaboards and the Indian Ocean region and two rogue adversarial nations, the considered assessment by old-salt veterans is that even three aircraft carriers, meaning two on the sea and one in refit, are not enough

Making India a developed nation by 2047: An agenda for the nation

The other pillars of democracy, the judiciary and media, must remain steadfastly independent and impartial guardians of the Constitution. The people still repose their greatest faith in them to protect their rights and uphold their aspirations

Importing wheat for India’s food security is an imperative

Thus, more than one third of the world’s hungry and undernourished people are in India, which is alarming and embarrassing, if not shameful. India’s rank in the global hunger index also (GHI) has dropped to 101 out of 116 countries

Rupee convertibility: Can it make the Indian currency stronger?

Days are ahead when the rupee will tend to become fully convertible. Full convertibility means fully capital account convertibility in the balance of payment. It opens the market for foreign investors, businessmen and trade partners

Is Bangladesh heading for stagflation?

Bangladesh is going through a tough economic situation; the government’s two largest sources of foreign currency revenues are the export of readymade garment products and remittances from overseas. Remittances are already suffering

On their 75th independence anniversary, peace pilgrims from India bring message of love to Pakistan

This is part of a long tradition of celebrating the two countries’ independence days together, started by activists like the late Dr Mubashir Hasan, Nirmala Deshpande, Asma Jahangir, Kuldip Nayar, and others.  Peace groups on either side have been doing this for a couple of decades now, even as administrations in both countries try to prevent them