In The News

Hate Goes Viral in India: Diplomat

Siddharthya Roy May 5, 2020
Questions emerge over India’s Covid-19 response with displaced migrant workers, food shortages and low testing rates. Analysts also continue to criticize the Indian government’s abrupt lockdown imposed with four hours’ notice. “Mandating social distancing in a country where cities have high population densities, and also announcing a complete shutdown of transportation necessary for people to...

Tribes Dream of a United Nagaland: Al Jazeera

April 30, 2020
Borders drawn by British colonialists for Myanmar and India divided indigenous peoples with long histories in the region. Though checkpoints and mountains divide the two nations, Naga tribes still talk about uniting the 3 million people living in India with the 400,000 in north Myanmar, one of that country’s poorest regions. The tribes, more fragmented over the years, also differ over rebel...

Climate Migrants Under Himalayas: New York Times

Bhadra Sharma and Kai Schultz April 12, 2020
Nepalese living under the Himalayas are suffering as the climate warms and must leave their homes to earn a living. Millions of South Asians who rely on agriculture in Bangladesh, India and Nepal are at risk with extreme weather, including glacial melt, droughts and erratic flooding. In addition, scientists have found that rising temperatures might allow malaria and dengue to spread at higher...

Lockdown Disrupts Agri Supply Chains: Dawn

Mohammad Hussain Khan April 7, 2020
Wheat is ready for harvest in Pakistan, but the areas are in lockdown since March 22 to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Many farmers anticipate governments to extend lockdowns. At the same time, they anticipate price pressure for the crops. Sharecroppers face particular challenges. “Whilst a grower has multiple income generation options, a sharecropper depends on one crop or livestock to keep his...

COVID-19 Hits Indian Outsourcing: Financial Times

Benjamin Parkin April 4, 2020
As the COVID-19 spreads in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day nationwide shutdown with a strict curfews and limitations on running non-essential businesses. The shutdown poses disruptions for one of India’s pillar industries – IT outsourcing serves many major multinational companies, such as Citibank and Pfizer. With more than 900 confirmed cases at outsourcing firms, IT...

India’s Tragic Pandemic Lockdown: BBC

Soutik Biswas March 31, 2020
India has more than 1.3 billion people, and about 20 percent live less than $2 per day. So after the government imposed a lockdown to top the spread of COVID-19, many Indians lacked shelter, food, savings or other protections. A government order turned most into refugees overnight, creating a humanitarian crisis and worsening the coronavirus threat. “Work and wages dried up after India declared a...

Danger for India’s Foreign Policy: Diplomat

Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan March 6, 2020
Corporate and political leaders tend to avoid partnerships that present human rights problems. “Issues such as the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and India’s actions in Kashmir are beginning to affect India’s relations with its neighbors, major Islamic countries such as Iran and Indonesia, and strategic partners such as the United States,” explains Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan for the Diplomat....