Changing our transport behaviour is therefore the need of the hour. It becomes imperative that cycling and pedestrian walking is fully integrated with our existing public transport systems, writes Pankaj M Munjal for South Asia Monitor
Air Pollution Knows No Borders: Smog Over Kathmandu Is A Regional Failure
As the World Bank notes, isolated national actions are insufficient when pollution itself ignores borders. India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Pakistan share the same airshed. Without cooperation, each country keeps breathing its neighbour’s mistakes. “As the government representing the largest population affected by air pollution, India should lead this effort. Instead, the region has drifted away from cooperation, and the cost has been catastrophic,” Dr Subedee said.
When Cricket Stops Being ‘Just Cricket’: South Asian Sporting Diplomacy in Retreat
This is certainly not a call to romanticise sport or overstate its diplomatic capacity. Neither did cricket ever resolve South Asia’s conflicts. But it softened their edges. It reminded the public that despite borders and disputes there existed a cultural language. The erosion of that language should now concern the whole of South Asia. Because when even the simplest forms of cultural exchange become difficult, rebuilding trust happens to be infinitely harder.
Bangladesh’s February Referendum and the Future of Secularism
Bangladesh, though Muslim‑majority, has historically significant Hindu, Buddhist, Christian, and Indigenous minorities. Removing secularism would create a profound democratic dilemma as it is the safeguard against majoritarian dominance and structural exclusion. The South Asian experience shows the risks of privileging religion in constitutions.
With India-EU Trade Deal, It's Time To Recast India's Foreign Policy
What India next needs to consider is opening a dialogue with Beijing, while remaining mindful of its security concerns. Years of hostility and China’s anti-India posturing, coupled with its hegemonic aspirations, have understandably created an atmosphere of deep distrust. However, the atmospherics are now right for a rethink as to whether current distancing serves mutual interest. The middle path approach justifies seeking out areas of collaboration, especially through enhanced trade and thereby dilute the overdependence on the US market, both for China and for India.
More on Spotlight
Ram Temple was necessary to re-establish traditional Hindu values
The struggle for building a Ram Temple should be seen as a clash between civilizational values, writes Arun Anand for South Asia Monitor
India in the South China Sea: Need for counterweight to China in the region
India’s current policy reorientation suggests that for it to overcome its continental and regional challenges vis-à-vis China’s increasing assertion, it must also involve itself in Beijing’s geographic neighborhood, writes Don McLain Gill for South Asia Monitor
Will India become a Hindu rashtra?
Is the Hindu rashtra already here, marking the end of Nehruvian secularism? Just as Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan is said to be keen on reviving the Islamic Ottoman empire, forsaking Kemal Ataturk’s secularism, is Modi leading India towards the pre-Muslim period of ancient India?, writes Amulya Ganguli for South Asia Monitor
In the time of COVID-19 pandemic, let’s not forget other epidemics in Nepal
It is clear that Nepal is exposed to multiple forms of infectious diseases. So, it becomes imperative for the Nepal government to be better equipped and expedite viral monitoring to stop possible outbreaks in the future, writes Jivesh Jha for South Asia Monitor
Kashmir a year after: Sullenness inside, support outside
There is little doubt, however, that the removal of the “temporary” provision of a special status for Jammu & Kashmir does have a strong measure of support outside the ruling party because it was perceived as an artificial barrier that fostered separatism, writes Amulya Ganguli for South Asia Monitor
China will not define LAC; unlikely to revert to April 2020 status
India has hopes on continuing talks but for Beijing, talks are only to gain time - similar to what the terrorists do, writes Lt Gen P. C. Katoch (retd) for South Asia Monitor
The curious affairs of Cynthia Ritchie and her Pakistani dalliances
There are numerous conjectures against or in support of Ritchie who is fighting her own court battles against the PPP brass. But it is not difficult to conclude that she is being used to tarnish the PPP leaders, dead and living, writes Mahendra Ved for South Asia Monitor
Nepal and India need to know and understand each other better; blame game won't help
There is a crying need for establishing a Nepal Study Center in New Delhi and an India Study Center in Kathmandu, writes Kamal Dev Bhattarai for South Asia Monitor
Health diplomacy: COVID-19 opens up opportunities for India’s pharma
As the world battled a never health threat in coronavirus, India’s dependable pharmaceutical sector has risen to the occasion, writes Dr. Gurpreet Sandhu for South Asia Monitor
National security: Strategic deterrence in the Indian context (Part II of two-part series)
Our goal is to achieve punitive and credible deterrence capability against Pakistan and China respectively. While it will be a challenge, India has the capabilities and capacities to fight a two-front war and ensuring a stalemate, which will be a strategic victory, with grave consequences to the aggressors, writes Lt Gen P R Kumar (retd) for South Asia Monitor
Zoonotic diseases: Continued wildlife exploitation will lead to next pandemic
Continued exploitation of the natural world through hunting, trade, habitat degradation, and urbanisation has shifted mammal populations and led to the rise in infectious animal diseases that can jump over to humans, writes Sarmin Akter for South Asia Monitor
India should aim high to be a global aerospace hub
With trust in China – presently one of the largest exporters of aircraft components - weakening. India’s future as a manufacturer of higher-complexity aerospace items is completely in our hands. India must present itself as a viable alternative to China's sourcing, writes Ramesh Ramchandani for South Asia Monitor
India's anti-defection law exposes its flawed democracy
One serious objection to the anti-defection law is the unlimited powers given to every political party to put down dissent or an alternative view, writes Vinod Aggarwal for South Asia Monitor
Ladakh standoff: India needs to enhance its deterrence reputation
It is going to be a very interesting winter to come, as it is going to be a defining moment in our history having far greater implications than tactical, if we come out of it achieving our national and military objective, writes Lt Gen PR Kumar (retd) for South Asia Monitor
