Today in Pakistan universities have proliferated and where in 2000 there were about 1 million post secondary students, in 2020 there were nearly 5 million and they have expectations, and they are also more political. But it is also the 30 and 40 year olds, generations of Pakistanis who are frustrated with the lifestyle of the rich and corrupt, and of a military they increasingly see in a similar light.
In the larger South Asia context, air pollution does not follow national boundaries and therefore the solutions for all the airsheds cannot come from any one city or a country. The countries in South Asia – India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan - that share a common airshed are impacted by the transboundary pollution. More than half of the air pollution across major cities in South Asia is not local but transboundary in nature.
Regional bodies like the SAARC, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, have the potential to foster cooperation on climate adaptation, disaster preparedness, and trans-border pollution control. However, geopolitical tensions, particularly between India and Pakistan, hinder progress.
In the years gone by, India was defined by its religious and cultural strengths, but it has now taken Prime Minister Modi, with a new initiative, to give a boost to India-Caribbean ties through a purely development agenda. It is hoped that CARICOM would set up the mechanisms to get this agenda going. Is it that India is now showing its readiness to take on American and Chinese frontiers aimed at becoming a leader of the Global South if not a world power?
Bangladesh and other low-income industrialised nations shouldn't be forced to transition to a non-carbon (net zero) economy on the same timelines. The international community should give Bangladesh, the country most affected by climate change, a high priority in receiving financial resources for both adaptation and mitigation.
Even today the situation is no different. Most of the manufacturers make the rickshaw bodies here and fit them with imported motors, etc. from China. This is how e-rickshaw manufacturing has proliferated in India.
There is an interesting development of note in the US, which casts a shadow on free speech and political asylum in the Western world, with a direct bearing on the alleged covert intelligence operations by India in the North American continent.
The upcoming election will also define Bangladesh’s relations with great powers, namely the USA, India, and China
No other country in the world comes close to the hydro-hegemony that China has established. From Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to Myanmar’s troubled Kachin and Shan states, China has widened its dam building to disputed or insurgency-torn areas despite local opposition.
Germany's experience with nuclear energy serves as a valuable lesson, prompting Pakistan to intensify its pursuit of nuclear energy as a practical avenue for its energy needs
In 2022, an overwhelming 45 million children lacked access to basic drinking water services in South Asia, according to UNICEF
With the LoC and now even LAC active around the year conventional artillery might be supplemented with Hamas-type rockets, both by China and Pakistan, Pakistan in particular. India's vital military establishments and civilian targets are right across the LoC and vulnerable to such strikes. A few jihadis from Pakistan have already threatened India with a similar strike.
In Afghanistan, in addition to emitting millions of tons of carbon dioxide during the conflict, the US military footprint contributed more directly to the immediate destruction of the Afghan environment.
In a multipolar world, the relationships will be defined by the requirements in each separate space like security, economy, etc rather than gravitating wholesome to defined blocs.
With the Hamas attack on the Israeli music festival on October 7, it is no surprise that Israel, after years of not acting against the LeT, took action this year. It is possible that this gesture was initiated to garner support from India, which could eventually lead to India banning Hamas as well.
What happens in COP28 on Dubai’s climate conference battleground in the first half of December 2023 may not result in bloodshed but its consequences could be drenched in blood, mass migration, and starvation.
The evolution of mall cities in Sri Lanka represents a complex and multidimensional transformation that intertwines economic, technological, environmental, and social dimensions.
Why then after 18 years we have had to get foreign help and equipment for the Silkyara tunnel rescue? Should this equipment and capability not be with the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF)?
Both Ottawa and Washington have historically been rather lackadaisical, if not downright conniving, in their dealing with India’s decades-long attempts to act against the Khalistan movement’s violent underpinnings in the two countries.
