Overall, observing today’s India evokes an alternating mixture of despair and heady optimism. At the face of it, her problems seem insurmountable and yet, incredibly, her citizens are rushing forward with a glint in their eye that suggests that they know where they want to be – and they’ll figure out a way to get there.
Short-term measures will not address the roots of India’s food crisis. Long in the making, the real problems extend far beyond a spike in spot prices caused by variable weather and their resolution will require much more than changes in the Cabinet lineup.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines “pogrom” as “an organized massacre of a particular ethnic group”. By this definition, although there have been hundreds of religious riots in independent India, there have been only two pogroms: that directed against Sikhs in Delhi in 1984, and that directed against the Muslims of south Gujarat in 2002. Ramachandra […]
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who is credited with facilitating India’s economic liberalization in 1991, is currently under pressure over concerns of price rise and increasing inflation. Thanks to the economic reforms of the 1990s a color television in India is much cheaper today than it was two decades ago. However, the cost of food items […]
In a recent turn of events that could be both good and bad news for India-China relations, China has issued stapled visas to two men from Arunachal Pradesh (AP). While this could be construed as an insult to India, it should also be noted that China had so far refrained from issuing visas to anyone […]
Rather than cast India’s super wealthy as this era’s robber barons or malefactors of great wealth, a more salutary response to renewed concerns about concentrated wealth and influence would be to enact deeper reforms of the Indian state.
It was like just another formality in the Sino-Indian relationship being fulfilled, as the Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao concluded his “significant” “trust-building” India visit on Friday. The Chinese Premier brought along a huge entourage of 400 business leaders to India, signaling the only purpose of his visit – more business. India and China signed […]
Last week began with a bang as Wikileaks snuck out its latest offering of classified government cables and documents causing a stir in diplomatic circles. The leaked documents provide a glimpse into the U.S. State Department’s dealings with and impressions of various countries and global leaders. While the veracity of these documents will continue to […]
The WikiLeaks cables so far contain no bomb-shell revelations but are valuable in providing greater texture to Washington’s policy in South Asia and in illuminating the unsolvable conundrums that bear on U.S. and Indian relations with Pakistan.
In yet another tragic attack carried out by terror outfits in the temple town of Varanasi in India, one child was killed and at least 32 others injured. It has been reported that the terror blast was carried out by Indian Mujahideen. The blast occurred outside the temple at Shitla Ghat in Varanasi town in […]
Amid a spate of corruption scandals in India, glimmers of political change may have shone forth last week from what until a few years ago was the most unlikeliest of places.
The past few days have brought mixed news regarding India’s economic future.
The timing could not have been more perfect. A new report by Global Financial Integrity about Illicit Financial Flows from India comes as the perfect topping on the 2G spectrum scam, the Adarsh Housing Scam and the Commonwealth Games. According to the report, India lost approximately $213 billion in illicit financial flows from the country […]
India’s reputation has quickly rebounded from the Commonwealth Games fiasco.
Among the many significant aspects of President Obama’s trip to Asia this week are the agreements and programs that are being announced relative to climate and energy. In India, the headline news was his endorsing India’s quest for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. But with India being one of the fastest growing […]