BUSINESS
Private Sector Participation: can it lead India’s domestic military growth story?
India's private sector lags in military production despite reforms and opportunities. To lead the domestic MIC, it must adopt an entrepreneurial mindset, compete effectively with defence PSUs, and capitalize on new public policy initiatives
WORLD
Civil-military Disharmony: Lessons from Bangladesh's military challenge to civilian rule
The recent case of the Bangladesh military defying Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wazed highlights complex issues in civil-military relations and raises concerns about democratic stability and institutional integrity
WORLD
Who pays for defence? Myth and reality of military aid in international relations
As the US Presidential election heats up, the necessity of spending billions in military aid to Taiwan and Ukraine has come under scrutiny. Even as the ongoing debates on military aid and its effectiveness heats up, it remains a contentious tool in international relations
INDIA
Procurement reforms: How manual reforms can take the story further?
Procurement manuals play a big role, they are supposed to provide a right choice architecture and a public policy communication tool. It is time for some manuals to ‘shed their weight’ and adopt a simple, trimmer and leaner outlook
BUSINESS
India Budget 2024: Shorter budget cycle can make the exercise more efficient
The budgetary cycle was preponed which means now it is passed well before March 31. But the budget cycle rules are still quite comprehensive and time consuming. Let’s look at a few policy recommendations to reduce this stretched out budget cycle
POLITICS
Bihar Bridge Collapses: Call to improve contract management for infrastructure projects
Bihar has a history of bad roads and bridge construction. Though the recent news reports point to a more pan-India problem, it highlights the issue of incompetence and perhaps corruption in issuing contracts
WORLD
China’s military-industrial complex has a quality problem
From Pakistan to Bangladesh, clients are disappointed. It’s trailing the US and France, but it’s premature to write off China
WORLD
Russia appoints new Defence Minister amid Ukraine war, a leadership lesson in the offing
People watching the progression in the Russia-Ukraine war would agree that Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu had to go due to stagnant and fossilised war dynamics. It remains to be seen if this change of guard will alter Russia’s position
BUSINESS
How the Finance Commission can be strengthened
Much of the work and legacies of previous Finance Commissions is getting lost because it isn’t a permanent body. Administrative difficulties also abound. A provisional solution is to turn the Finance Commission Division (FCD), as the custodian of FC records and responsible for its award implementation, to be turned into full-fledged department, serving as the permanent secretariat for the Finance Commissions
BUSINESS
Does money win the war — Inferences from the Russian push in defence expenditure
In uncertain war atmospherics, overt emphasis on defence spending is more about politics and marketing than an effective tool in war economy management
BUSINESS
Strategic lessons for military powers from Wagner Group’s march
Civil leadership in all military powers should realise that matters of war and peace are not left to generals alone but should be premised on civilian supremacy
WORLD
Why are militaries being challenged all over the world?
There are plausible explanations for one military being challenged by another within the country. Militaries in many countries are not true professionals, specialising only in ‘violence’.
INDIA
India’s Defence Expenditure: Higher spending doesn’t mean better deterrence
As the SIPRI Factsheet shows, many established military powers have built up their capabilities with far lesser financial resources than India. Probably, we can learn a few lessons from these countries
BUSINESS
Equitable, open and transparent global arms trade to remain a distant dream
We need more nationalism, a techno-security mindset amongst importing countries, an entrepreneurial society and a will to innovate amongst the national military industrial complexes to come out from the perpetual ‘technological dependence’ over a few arms exporting countries
BUSINESS
International arms transfers: What the SIPRI factsheet doesn’t tell us?
Neither the SIPRI factsheet nor any other supplements published by other think tanks or universities help us understand the noticeable paradox in international arms transfers – defence expenditure trends are on the rise but international arms transfers have recorded a decline in all continents except Europe
BUSINESS
The CPEC presents more chinks in China’s BRI ambitions
China is increasingly bitter about the multi-pronged attacks on its projects, and personnel across Pakistan. Popular mood in Pakistan is increasingly tilting against the CPEC due to the high cost of loans, and the resultant debt-trap
BUSINESS
Lessons India must take from China’s war games in Taiwan Strait
While these may be distant drills, India’s policy-makers may still like to draw inferences for better management of futuristic Chinese offensives like frequent transgressions across the LAC
BUSINESS
Spies, lies, and China’s invisible war against India
While we may have a grand strategy to minimise China’s invisible war against India, there is a disconnect in public policy efforts on the one hand and public apathy on the other hand
POLITICS
Arms Procurement: Indian manufacturers gain popularity but G2G method remains best option
The domestic military industrial complex should be supported to meet the arms requirement in the long term, and the G2G contracts could be the last minute assured line for good quality weapons
POLITICS
Has war fatigue pushed the Russia-Ukraine conflict on the backburner?
As long as it is not directly affecting us, as a society we’ve become numb to thousands of soldiers dying, millions being displaced, and city after city being destroyed in a distant land
BUSINESS
Russia-Ukraine War | There’s a gap between ground realities and Western policy illusions. Here’s why
The ongoing Russia-Ukraine war is an example wherein despite the increasing difficulty faced by the Ukraine military, write ups and policy suggestions cropping up in Western journals are openly hinting towards a possible victory for Ukraine
POLITICS
Russia-Ukraine War | To win a war, does ‘strategic neighbourhood’ always matter?
Even if victory comes eventually to Russia through annexation of Ukraine’s disputed portions, and wide-ranging destruction of its military, it would be a moth-eaten victory that will hurt Russia in the long term
BUSINESS
Four reasons why Make in India has not yet captured the national security discourse
The systematic destruction of India’s manufacturing sector, particularly in small and medium enterprises, has not been adequately scrutinised from a national security prism
WORLD
Defence | Road to self-reliance in weapons manufacturing is a long journey
If the great power club were to be judged by military power, and the resilience and expanse of its domestic military industrial complex, India would remain out of the club for foreseeable future
