Dear Reader,
Welcome to this week’s Takshasila Dispatch. In this edition, we cover our participation in the BIC Hub’ba 2023, issue brief on one year of the Russia-Ukraine war, and opinions on China’s outreach to Europe, law-making around Big Tech in India, the selection process for the Agnipath Scheme and the Union Government’s recent sovereign green bonds issue.
Takshashila at BIC Hub’ba 2023
Takshashila collaborated with the Bangalore International Centre and participated in the Policy Adda at the BIC Hub’ba 2023 this weekend.
Shambhavi Naik (Biology & Policy), Anushka Saxena & Saurabh Todi (India-China Relations), Suman Joshi (Public Policy Programmes), and Anupam Manur (De-globalisation) led the discussions.
The event had an interesting mix of policy wonks, members of civil society organisations, and a curious audience.
One Year of Russia-Ukraine War
Along with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war is a seminal event shaping future geopolitics and is likely to determine the shape and trends of the post-pandemic world order. One year has elapsed from the beginning of the Russian invasion and the end of the war remains nowhere in sight.
In Takshashila’s latest Issue Brief, we take a look at the views put forth by us regarding the Russia-Ukraine war, particularly concerning the threat of nuclear war, India’s neutral position and its real interests, and the true implications of strategic autonomy.
China’s Economic Focus on European Union
China is looking to avert a decoupling of supply chains that might leave it cornered and is currently focusing its energies on an outreach to Europe. In an opinion piece for The Quint, Anushka Saxena writes on the decline in the Chinese economy and its relations with Europe:
The primary aim of Chinese foreign policy in the months to come will be to “reset its economy and win back friends.” The immediate focus of this appears to be European countries. From Beijing’s perspective, this is essential given the backlash it has faced both internally and from governments of the West over its zero-COVID policy, and the Communist Party of China (CPC’s) crackdown on the private sector which caused the bursting of its property market bubble and ripple effects for real estate and big technology firms across the globe.
Big Tech is Good for India
In an opinion for Nikkei Asia, Shailesh Chitnis writes that Big Tech can play a complementary role in India’s self-reliance efforts and Indian legislation must reflect that:
Pushing local technologies makes sense for creating digital public goods or for strategic areas. For everything else, an open door benefits India. Facebook and WhatsApp are India's most popular social networks. Amazon is the leading e-commerce platform, and Android powers most Indian phones. The growth of these platforms mirrors the growth of India's digital economy. The presence of Big Tech has created a culture of product-based companies that has spawned a vibrant startup economy. Last year, the country ranked fourth globally in venture capital investments and created more new unicorns, or startups valued at $1 billion or more, than China.
Agnipath Selection Criteria
While the Agnipath scheme is a welcome reform in recruitment to armed forces, in a column for The Print, Lt. Gen. Prakash Menon argues that the selection process still requires an upgrade:
The Army vacancies are still tied geographically to ratios based on Recruitable Male Population (RMP). Therefore applicants belonging to the Indo-Gangetic belt, where the bulk of our population resides will be advantaged over places with lower population density. Merit, the principle that should really count, is diluted in that many Indians are denied equal opportunity.
If the principle of equal opportunity is upheld, it could affect the composition of regiments and units that continue to maintain a British legacy that was essentially based on the Martial Classes logic, an anachronism that is promoted by the belief that military effectiveness is better in units when they have commonality based on ethnicity/class/ caste/ religion and geography. This canard has been disproved since long and its outstanding example is the Infantry Regiment, The Brigade of the Guards that was specially raised by Field Marshal Carriappa in 1949.
Can Sovereign Green Bonds Finance Climate Action?
The Government of India closed the issuance of Rs. 8000 crores worth of sovereign green bonds earlier this month. Since fighting climate change requires massive investments in energy transition and de-carbonising the economy, can green bonds play a critical role?
In last Friday’s All Things Policy, Shrikrishna Upadhyaya spoke to Shantanu Srivastava, Energy Finance Analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics & Financial Analysis on sustainable financing, sovereign green bonds, and regulatory reform:
Nitin Pai on The Seen and The Unseen
Nitin Pai, Director of the Takshashila Institution is the guest on this week’s The Seen and The Unseen, hosted by Amit Varma, where they talk about Nitin’s life, his learnings, his liberal nationalism, and the task of nation-building.
Apply for the NASP Fellowship
The NASP Fellowship aims to create high-quality scholarship & knowledge of Pakistan by nurturing new generations of analysts in academia, think tanks, media & industry.
NASP invites applications from researchers from any background, including from universities, research institutes, media, government services, and industry, who are enthusiastic about undertaking new research on Pakistan.
Prospective fellows must either be working or studying in India, have at least an undergraduate degree, and be proficient in English.
NASP fellows will undertake research in one or more of the following areas: economy; defence, geopolitics; environment; education; technology; society; and sub-national politics.
That’s all from us this week. Take care!