ThePrint | Modi 3.0 must improve civil-military relations. Bring NSS, relieve CDS of extra duties

The 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the results have certainly strengthened India’s democratic credentials. The future course charted by the central government, led for the third time by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will be revealed through its policies and actions, indicating the extent of acceptance of the broad political contours of the electoral verdict, albeit subjectively interpreted. Read the full article here.

Indian Express | Agnipath 2.0: A solution for armed forces and applicants

The future of the Agnipath scheme is a pressing concern for the new government at the Centre. The narrative that this scheme dampened the NDA’s prospects gained momentum during the election campaign. The spokesperson of the JD(U), a key NDA partner, has publicly stated that the scheme upset some sections and needs to be modified. Despite these political rumblings, there is a noticeable lack of specific alternatives to address the original problems that led to the crafting of the Agnipath scheme. This article proposes an “inverse induction model” as a solution to make Agnipath 2.0 meet its operational, political, and fiscal objectives. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Even if Agnipath is scrapped, India needs tough reforms to cut ballooning defence pensions

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s letter to President Droupadi Murmu on the “discriminatory” Agnipath scheme shows its importance in this Lok Sabha election. The BJP government introduced the scheme in 2022, where soldiers enrolled for four years are christened as Agniveers. Political parties across the spectrum have held differing postures on the scheme.

The Congress’ election manifesto stated that the party would “abolish the Agnipath programme and direct the Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard) to resume normal recruitment to achieve the full sanctioned strength”. The BJP manifesto, on the other hand, maintains that the four-year enlistment programme will benefit a large section of the young and employable population. It has also stated that it is open to changes in the scheme after a review conducted by the Services. In the psychological framework of the electoral campaign, the issue is dovetailed within the larger issue of significant unemployment at the national level. Read the full article here.

Mint | The world should take up China's nuclear no-first-use treaty proposal

The world is too distracted with ongoing wars and high-stakes election campaigns to pay attention to a remarkable proposal from China. At the United Nations Conference on Disarmament held in Geneva this February, one of Beijing’s senior officials dealing with nuclear weapons policy declared that “nuclear-weapon states should negotiate and conclude a treaty on no-first-use of nuclear weapons against each other or make a political statement in this regard." Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Army caught between religious & constitutional values. Defend secular, apolitical nature

Since Independence, the Indian Armed Forces – particularly the Indian Army – have had to navigate the socio-cultural minefields thrown up by the vagaries of domestic politics and religions. The Constitution provided the beacon that illuminated the path ahead. A beacon designed on the belief that maintaining an apolitical institutional character and secular outlook would sustain and defend India’s integrity. The foundation of this secular outlook was rooted in the embracement of the encultured notion that the military institution had no religion and the equivalent of its holy book was the Constitution. But such an institutional belief was subject to being shaken by the crosswinds of India’s religious diversity. Read the full article here.

Mint | The carbon emissions of war put humanity’s right to exist at risk

The regional head of a well-regarded global philanthropic foundation recently told me that his board had decided to exclusively focus on funding causes concerned with combating climate change. Knowing that it had previously supported work on nuclear disarmament and international security, I asked why those problems were no longer of interest to the foundation. His reply left me bemused. Climate change, he told me, is a long-term existential threat to humanity. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | What are China’s intentions in building Shaksgam Valley road? Not security, look to politics

China’s road-building capability and intentions in the Himalayas were highlighted recently through a post on X by researcher Nature Desai. Utilising satellite imagery, he argued that China has built a road across the Aghil Pass, located at a height of 4,805 m, and entered the lower Shaksgam Valley. The roadhead is now less than 30 miles from the Siachen Glacier. This triggered speculation in the Indian media about China’s intentions and capabilities regarding the potential collusive threat posed by China and Pakistan to India’s defences in the Siachen Glacier region. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Iran and Israel don’t have free will to start a war. It’s contingent on geopolitics

Exchange of blows from a distance was the prime characteristic of the latest bout between Iran and Israel. Firepower expressed itself through drones and missiles launched from aerial or land-based platforms. The main difference this time was that both nations attempted to apply military force at targets directly inside the opponents’ territory. The immediate trigger was Israel’s attack on Iran’s consulate in Damascus on 1 April. Iran considered it a violation of its sovereignty according to international legal norms and agreements. Read the full article here.

Mint | Iran-Israel lesson: Effective missile defence is costly and could be risky too

The conflicts between Ukraine and Russia and between Israel and Iran over Palestine have demonstrated that missile defence has come of age. Even before Israel, with the help of the US and its allies, successfully intercepted nearly all of the 320 drones, cruise and ballistic missiles that Iran launched last week, the Ukrainians had reported that they had shot down all 80 of the drones that the Russians had dispatched against them on one New Year’s weekend. Read the full article here.

Takshashila Blogs | An Invitation to Inquiry: Rekindling Flame of the Mahabharata

Enduring strength of a banyan tree's roots symbolise the advantages of tapping into the wisdom, values, and traditions passed down through generations. Just as the banyan tree draws nourishment and support from its deep and interconnected root system, individuals can find inspiration, beliefs and thoughts in their cultural history. Just as banyan tree expands its foliage, society can also learn to strengthen and reconnect with its foundations while it expands. Beliefs and ideas from the past may not directly solve the challenges of contemporary times yet they can serve as potent instruments for analysing and reflecting on modern political, social, and personal facets, thereby fostering critical thinking. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | MIRV tech entry in nuclear arsenal must not lead India away from ‘No First Use’ policy

India has achieved two major milestones in modernising its nuclear weapons arsenal. First, the entry of MIRV technology in March, followed by the successful user trial of Agni-Prime ballistic missile on 3 April with a range of 1,000-2,000 km. The MIRV, or Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicle technology, tests have raised concerns about a potential nuclear arms race between India, China, and Pakistan and whether it would amplify similar concerns at the global level involving other nuclear weapon powers. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Successful Agni-5 test just one step. India needs to prepare an airborne command post

India’s recent successful test of MIRVs, Multiple Independently Targeted Re-entry Vehicles, delivered by the AGNI-5 missiles marks the success of its efforts to counter the Ballistic Missile Defense Systems of potential adversaries, China and Pakistan. The implications of MIRVs being included in the existing nuclear arsenal were covered earlier in ThePrint. This article attempts to utilise the limelight of the MIRV success, to highlight a critical issue that requires to be addressed post-haste. It relates to the survivability of India’s Nuclear Command and Control System. Read the full article here.

Mint | The West’s disregard for global norms is endangering the world

In the summer of the year 416 BCE, an Athenian naval fleet turned up on the island of Melos and demanded that its population submit to slavery. The Melians argued that since they had refused to side with Sparta—Athens’ main adversary in the ongoing conflict —and instead wished to remain neutral, it would only be right for the big powers to leave them alone. The Athenian response, one of the famous lines in world history, was “You understand as well as we do that in the human sphere judgements about justice are relevant only between those with an equal power to enforce it, and that the possibilities are defined by what the strong do and the weak accept." In Richard Crawley’s classic 1874 translation of Thucydides’s History of the Peloponnesian War, the words are punchier. “The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must." Read the full article here.

Deccan Herald | Navy is showing its mettle in the Indian Ocean Region

The Indian Navy is playing an important role as a security provider in the Indian Ocean Region, with repeated operations demonstrating its capabilities, particularly in the north-western Indian Ocean, where security risks have increased due to the twin problems of Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and piracy off the coast of Africa. This has strengthened Indian Navy’s credentials and India’s reputation as a first responder and a force for peace and stability in the area. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Indian Navy is opening submarine doors to women, but it must navigate crewing challenges

Some cultures, such as the French, Portuguese, and Italian, consider ships to be masculine, while the Germans use ‘it’, in the neuter gender. But in India and other parts of the world, a ship is referred to in the feminine gender. An explanation, supposedly rendered in a humorous vein, is more naughty than nautical—the first thing a ship does on arriving at a port is to make it for the ‘buoys’! It is perhaps not surprising that among the three Services of the Indian Armed Forces, it is the Navy that is at the forefront of inducting women and projecting ‘nari shakti’. Recently, the Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Hari Kumar, envisioned the Navy’s aspiration of having a woman as its chief within the next 30-35 years. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Why some Navy veterans are opposed to the introduction of kurta-pyjama in the dress code

The kurta and pyjama, Central Asian in origin, have for centuries been popular in South Asia. It made its entry this month as an add-on to the list of the existing informal dresses in the Indian Naval officers’ messes and sailors’ institutes. Earlier in December, the Navy introduced new epaulettes which was publicised as being part of PM Modi’s political call for virasat par garv, pride in our heritage, and shedding ghulami ki mansikta, slave mentality. This article attempts to examine the military’s cultural value chain and identify the reasons for adverse reactions, especially on WhatsApp groups, the change in attire received from veterans in particular and civilians in general. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | India can be a major drone hub—if it learns to take risks, accept losses

The multiplicity of roles that drones can undertake has been battle-tested and their utility has been convincingly established. Depending on the role, drones come in various sizes. At the higher end of lethality are the American MQ 9-Reaper and at the lower end of surveillance is the Black Hornet weighing less than 1.2 ounces. India is in the process of acquiring 31 higher-end MQ9B Predator armed drones from the United States at an approximate cost of Rs 2.5 lakh crore. The deal was announced during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the US in 2023. The Navy already operates two unarmed Predator drones, which are on lease, at the Rajali naval air station in Tamil Nadu. The new acquisitions will be apportioned to the three Services with the Navy getting the majority share. Apart from the political message of reliance on the US for major weapon systems, it also signals that Atmanirbharta is not currently feasible in this class of weapon systems. Read the full article here.

Defence & Security Alert | Navigating Personnel Costs and Capital Expenditure in the Indian Defence Budget

A year ago, in an article for the DSA magazine, Rakshith Shetty conducted a thorough analysis of the defence pension systems in India and the United States. This inquiry led to the identification of four crucial insights extracted from the intricate framework of the U.S. defence pension system. In the present discussion, he pivots towards a deeper exploration, shedding light on the challenges hindering the modernisation efforts of the Indian Armed Forces. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Army promotions must be based on capabilities, not lineage. Turf protection is main mischief

Caste is likely to be a dominant plot in the upcoming Lok Sabha election. But let’s interrogate how this hierarchical and discriminatory structure endures in the promotion system of the Indian Army. There is seemingly a system of reservation in Army promotions. Discrimination based on identity derived from lineage is the hardened core of the caste system. In the Indian Army, the enduring marker for the selection of its senior leadership is the lineage or ‘inherited identity’, particularly the professional segment one is initially inducted into. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Poonch incident should encourage military justice review. Bring one law for three Services

The frequency of terrorist violence in the Rajouri-Poonch districts in the Jammu division of Jammu & Kashmir has remained a cause for concern for over two years. This is in contrast to the decline of terrorism in the Kashmir valley during the same period. A combination of mountainous terrain, jungles and contiguity with the Line of Control makes the area suitable for hit and run attacks. Pakistan’s hand is obvious and the time period also overlaps with the thinning out of the Rashtriya Rifles, a counter-terrorism force, post China’s aggressive manoeuvres in Ladakh in 2020. Read the full article here.