A prominent feature of this election is the massive influx of youth participation. Approximately 800,000 first-time voters are preparing to cast their ballots, and over 1,000 candidates under the age of 40 are contesting, signaling a profound generational shift. The political landscape is witnessing fierce competition between established traditional parties and emerging youth-centric forces. A key contest is unfolding in the Jhapa 5 constituency, a traditional stronghold where 35-year-old former Kathmandu mayor Balendra "Balen" Shah, representing the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), is challenging former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli of the Communist Party of Nepal (UML).
Escalation around Iran narrows diplomatic manoeuvring room across South Asia. India has cultivated strong defence ties with Israel, expanded strategic cooperation with Washington and maintained pragmatic engagement with Tehran, particularly in connectivity and energy sectors. A widening US–Iran confrontation complicates this balancing act.
There is a darker side to AI, it is now seen. Firms have established that AI can manipulate, blackmail and threaten. Findings by Anthropic have revealed that advanced AI systems can resort to blackmailing and threatening human users to achieve assigned goals or ensure their survival. As AI writes better versions of itself and big business powers it to seek new frontiers to occupy, will India re-skill and re-arm to keep its independence or run the risk of becoming a digitised colony?
Bangladesh has previously demonstrated its ability to decisively dismantle militant infrastructures. The question now is whether that momentum can be sustained amid shifting political and regional dynamics. If left unchecked, Islamic State Bengal’s evolving model - family cells, criminal financing, cross-border sanctuaries, and technical bomb-making sophistication - could reintroduce a phase of asymmetric violence not only within Bangladesh but across parts of South Asia.
Take, for instance, the recent rise in antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections across Nepal, India, and Bangladesh. Governments have started cracking down on antibiotic overuse in human medicine, yet the uncontrolled use of antibiotics in livestock and aquaculture remains largely unchecked. The result? Resistant bacteria continue to grow, eventually finding their way into human populations
South Asian states have steered clear of accepting formal responsibilities in addressing refugees, with only Afghanistan being a curious signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention. South Asian states have sought a more voluntary approach to taking in refugees, with geopolitical considerations driving the select acceptability of refugee communities.
Modi can invoke Trump’s language and highlight business and economic opportunities along with market mechanisms that are available almost on platter while pursuing a non-fossil fuel future. Particularly, Modi could showcase employment generation by promoting solar energy through the International Solar Alliance. He and Trump can strike bilateral and multilateral ventures as well as research programmes with BRICS on solar energy, modular nuclear plants, windmills, biofuels and green, grey and blue hydrogen.
On October 21, 2023, India launched ‘Project Udhbav’ during the inauguration of the Indian Military Heritage Festival to synthesize ancient wisdom with contemporary military practices, forging a unique and holistic approach to address modern security challenges. It is tempting to draw a correspondence between India’s and China’s initiatives just 17 days apart.
India has 24 nuclear reactors in operation in 8 nuclear power plants with a total installed capacity of 8,180 MW nuclear power produced a total of 48 TWh in 2023, contributing around 3% of total power generation in India. Due to earlier trade bans and lack of indigenous uranium, India has uniquely been developing a nuclear fuel cycle to exploit its reserves of thorium. India is actively pursuing the development of nuclear energy using thorium as its primary fuel source
Since the Colombo Process Ministerial Consultation in Bali, 2005, member states have taken concrete steps to improve the management of labour migration. There has been significant progress in areas of revised policies and regulations. There is greater cooperation between Colombo Process countries and key destination countries. Several initiatives are now in place including awareness-raising campaigns, orientation training, recruitment drives, remittance investment and welfare programmes.
India’s rise provides positive ripple impact to the region and the world, from economic and trade spillover effects to the larger equation of helping to secure and preserve the rules-based order that has been the main bedrock of global trade and maritime capacity, maintaining the sanctity of international law and global norms, and in securing the freedom of navigation and overflight in international waters
Economic considerations surrounding media ownership in South Asia amplify the difficulties of conducting value-neutral journalism. People and businesses with a strong desire to keep things amicable between governments and public institutions own a lot of big media outlets. Journalists are unable to objectively critique powerful entities due to their reliance on advertising, government contracts, or political patronage.
China’s pervasive and growing economic (finance, infrastructure, trade, and energy sectors), diplomatic, and overt/covert military influence, in Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, India’s northeastern states, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Maldives, and back to Gwadar in Pakistan is amply evident. The recent bonhomie between Bangladesh and Pakistan, both under China’s influence, raises fresh challenges for India’s security.
While a Chinese-backed coal power project in Sri Lanka is being carried out without opposition, Adani’s eco-friendly energy project, which the world is looking to as the energy of the future, is being opposed.
South Asia, home to nearly two billion people, stands at a crossroads as Trump’s policies reshape regional dynamics. India’s growing prominence within the QUAD strengthens its strategic position, but smaller economies like Bangladesh face vulnerabilities.
The mass deportations - which will potentially affect hundreds if not thousands of South Asians - are not logistically or financially possible and have been pared down by his nominees, limiting it to criminal migrants.
A number of leading universities and institutes around the world have initiated net-zero hubs in their campuses but India is the first country to initiate a collaborative national movement supported by government and industry. Integrating 23 IITs in this movement will be a groundbreaking concept that can elevate India as the world leader in clean technologies and of skilled human capital.
Imran Khan’s political journey in Pakistan highlights the transformative power of cyberspace in a liquid modern world. Initially dismissed by critics, Khan leveraged social media to build a narrative of hope and change. Khan’s PTI has consistently outperformed traditional parties in digital engagement, mobilizing urban youth and the diaspora.
If one analyzes the contemporary South Asian legal landscape, one can still see the influence of colonial-era laws and these laws are largely being used to oppress the common people. In Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan one has seen some colonial laws and their oppressive acts being changed and, in some instances, more oppressive ones taking their place.
