India and the World | India Writes

Deconstructing rise of Islamic State

October 3, 2015October 4, 2015 - by India Writes Network

How should India approach the IS? There have been a small number of young Indians who have gone and joined IS or have tried to do so. A few suspected IS sympathisers have been repatriated to India from UAE. India should do its utmost to prevent online radicalization and tighten controls at airports to prevent people from going abroad to join the IS.
Should India join the US-led war against IS? It is unlikely that a request will be made as it is well known that India does not wish to be militarily involved abroad unless it is a UN-led operation for peace keeping. India should avoid any such involvement for two reasons. One, such statements do not have any practical adverse impact on the IS. Secondly, India has over 7 million of its nationals in the area and the IS can retaliate by way of kidnapping one or two. Moreover, it is wise not to provoke the IS into taking serious interest in Kashmir.

Finally, India announces peak emission year ahead of Paris COP21

October 2, 2015October 2, 2015 - by India Writes Network

Promising to cut the intensity of its carbon emissions by 33 to 35 percent by 2030 from 2005 levels and make its economy more energy efficient, India finally announced its peak emission year in a climate change policy statement, released ahead of the Conference of Parties (COP-21) summit in Paris in December. India, the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases, had earlier resisted setting specific targets to cut emissions.

India to Pakistan: There’s only one point, give up terror for talks

October 2, 2015October 2, 2015 - by India Writes Network

Hitting back at Pakistan in the United Nations, India sent home a strong message to Pakistan to give up terror if it wants to resume talks with India. In a hard-hitting speech at the UN on October 1, India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj lashed out at Pakistan saying it must give up terror if the two countries must sit down and talk.

India hits back at Pakistan in UNGA, says Pakistan ‘breeding, sponsoring terror’

October 1, 2015October 1, 2015 - by India Writes Network

In a strong rebuttal of Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s anti-India speech raking up LoC violations and Kashmir issue, at the UN General Assembly (UNGA), India asserted that Islamabad is a victim of its own policies of breeding and sponsoring terrorism.

US-India-Japan trilateral dialogue: Enhancing maritime security

September 30, 2015September 30, 2015 - by India Writes Network

In the backdrop of China’s growing assertiveness in the region, US, India and Japan held the inaugural trilateral ministerial dialogue to discuss enhancing maritime security in the region.

India links effective UN peacekeeping with UNSC reforms

September 29, 2015September 29, 2015 - by Manish Chand

Raising the bar, India has unveiled plans to scale up its contribution to UN peacekeeping operations and linked it up with the urgent necessity of fast-tracking reform and expansion of the UN Security Council to make it more effective.

Modi-Obama meet: Climate change, terror, UNSC reforms top agenda

September 28, 2015September 28, 2015 - by Manish Chand

The climate has changed in the India-US relations, and it was palpable in sunny smiles and warmth seen between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama as they met for the third time in a year

Modi jams for Indian Century in California

September 28, 2015October 3, 2015 - by Manish Chand

The Modi frenzy swamped the sprawling SAP Center in California on Sunday evening as nearly 19,000 Indians watched the masterly performer weave a spell with his trademark oratory and his radiant vision of India’s Century. It was a captivating show in the heart of Silicon Valley, with music, dance and frenzied chants of ‘Modi, Modi’ filling the huge auditorium

Mapping next big steps in India-US Defence Partnership

September 28, 2015September 28, 2015 - by India Writes Network

Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States, the Cabinet Committee on Security approved the purchase of Boeing’s Apache and Chinook helicopters for the Indian Air Force. In a major impetus to defence ties, this deal worth $2.5 billion is the biggest defence contract signed by the NDA government after coming to power in May 2014.

Modi’s Facebook Connect Moment: Tears, transformation and song of new India

September 28, 2015September 28, 2015 - by Manish Chand

It was the quintessential Facebook moment for India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, eliciting thousands of likes. In a spirited townhall-style meeting at the Faceboook headquarters at the sprawling Menlo Park near San Francisco, the leader of the world’s largest democracy interacted with Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and captive listeners as he waxed eloquent on the power of social media to connect people in a wired world.
Mr Modi, who deftly harnessed social media for his electoral campaign in the summer of 2014, spoke about his ambitious agenda for transforming India through digital revolution. But the moment that’s going to stay in memory of nearly 500 people present at the Facebook HQ and all those following it on TV is when the Indian prime minister got emotional when talking about his mother, his eyes moist with tears.