Archive for the ‘India’ Category
Indian Military and the Challenge of Apolitical Strategic Discussions
On March 30, General Deepak Kapoor handed over charge to General V.K. Singh as the Chief of the Indian Army. General Kapoor’s statements were frequently picked by the media and his comments on India’s new war doctrine (which is not essentially ‘new’) created furor in the strategic community across the globe. On the occasion of General Kapoor’s retirement a few thoughts crossed my mind.
Is advocacy by the military—contrived or unintentional—in the public domain desirable or dangerous? Stephen P Cohen, in his seminal work on the Indian Army asserted that India’s armed forces readily accept their apolitical role—the problem is about who precisely defines the meaning of military and political. General Kapoor’s comment on the two-front war encouraged debate on the Cold Start strategy in the public domain, but did the General cross over into the political realm in doing so? Are public statements on feasibility of strategic policy by the military fostering discussion or is it violating the segregation of military and political roles?
I discuss these issues in greater detail in Pragati- The Indian National Interest Review. According to me, senior military officers should be allowed to speak on their behalf.
Readership Trends Among Indian Youth
Curious to know what the Indian youth is reading? Or even how much are they reading? What is their primary source of information: newspapers or television?
National Book Trust undertook a survey to answer these and many other questions. The survey was conducted by the National Council of Applied Economic Research in 2009.
Here is what the Youth Readership Survey revealed.
Six Suspects by Vikas Swarup
Reading Vikas Swarup’s murder thriller Six Suspects this weekend was a treat. Following the debutant success of Q&A, which was made into Oscar fame Slumdog Millionaire, Swarup continues to highlight India in this book. The thriller element of a murder mystery may not have been the greatest strengths of the plot, but the portrayal of India is indeed riveting. Without giving away the ‘mystery’ in the plot, here are a few things about Six Suspects that stand out. Click to continue…
Will we have enough Women to take advantge of 33% Reservation?
The country was celebrating the ‘victory’ of Women’s Bill after it garnered adequate support on the floor of Rajya Sabha (Upper House of India’s Parliament). I am not sure what 33% reservation in Parliament can do for women, but I am sure about what it cannot do. It cannot stop gendercide in India.
India’s Nuclear Weapons: Symbolic or Strategic…or Neither?
Whether it was December 2001 or November 2008, the Government of India did not respond militarily to terrorist strikes within the country, even when evidence of Pakistan’s involvement was available. The question is why? According to the Government of India, the country as a responsible state did not want to escalate a nuclear crisis in the region. This leads to an interesting juxtaposition of nuclear realities in the region: India cannot avenge a terror strike on it soil because it might prompt Pakistan to use nuclear weapons. But Pakistan can continue its strategy of ‘bleeding India by a thousand cuts’ without any fear of India’s nuclear capability. Vipin Narang has a carefully calibrated explanation for this discrepancy in his paper on “Pakistan’s Nuclear Posture: Implications for South Asian Stability.”
[Picture Courtesy: IBN Live]
What does M.F. Husain’s ‘renunciation’ of India mean?
Naked Sita on Hanuman's tail
For all those who are wondering why M.F. Husain “abandoned” India, here are a few thoughts (in words and pics) from an equally confused Indian.
According to Husain it was impossible for him to express his creativity in India. So what does this say about India’s claim as an open democratic society? Is Qatar more democratic than India?
Extending the Shiv Sena’s Argument Further
During the past week, I got a few forwarded e-mails with the subject “Bal and Raj Thackeray’s Point of View”. Since I have no interest in reading the views of these “exalted gentlemen”, I kept ignoring the mails. But finally when the surge continued, some coming from people who I knew to share my abhorrence for Shiv Sena politics, I thought of reading it. The content turned out to a logical, even though outrageous, extension of the Shiv Sena’s political rationale, if they have one. So here is the text of the mail….read and enjoy!
The Need to Strategize India-Pakistan Dialogue
“To Indians, cycles constitute the basis of life and stand in stark contrast to the Western linear view of time….in the Indian view, the cosmos also goes through repeated cycles of creation, decay, destruction and recreation…a cyclical view suggests no past and no future, just a continuing series of cycles.”
Though, I mostly disagree with George Tanham’s much famous analysis of India’s strategic culture, I could not but think about these words of Tanham before and after the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan met on February 25.
Who Will Defend India’s Defense Forces?
India expects the highest standards of professional conduct from its Armed Forces. And rightly so. The discipline and dedication of the Armed Forces are critical for ensuring the safety of our nation. But are not Indians too unrealistic in their expectations from the nation’s Armed Forces? Mere phrases like “We are proud of our Jawans”; “We have a military that thoroughly follows orders of the civilian leadership;” and wreath laying ceremonies at the Amar Jawan Jyoti are not enough to show our respect for the military personnel. Even the Amar Jawan Jyoti does not have the name of a single Indian soldier who scarified his life for independent India. The 90,000 names etched at AJJ are those of soldiers belonging to the British Indian Army who died during World War I and the Afghan Wars.
Coming back to the issue that motivated this post, the court martial of Lt. Gen. Awadesh Prakash.
India and NPT: Change or Continuity?
According to a recent analysis by David P. Fidler and Sumit Ganguly, India wants to join the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as a Nuclear Weapons State (NWS). Is such a development feasible or even desirable?