Op-Eds
Technological changes and social contracts
Social contracts have been the basis of how we construct societies. Every couple of generations we script new social contracts, and they keep evolving to better reflect our social norms and values. …
One nation one election
Would simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies benefit India? On 25 Jan 2017, President Pranab Mukherjee, in his customary eve of Republic Day address to the nation, came out in…
Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) decapitated
Is there opportunity for China and India? Why did US Opt Out? On 24 Jan 16, in one of his first executive orders, President Donald Trump formally pulled out the US from negotiations in the Trans-…
Chelsea Manning
On 18 Jan 17, President Obama commuted the sentence of Chelsea Manning, who was otherwise scheduled to serve 35 years, till 2045. US Private Bradley Manning (now Chelsea Manning) was convicted in…
Battle in Tata sons
Who will win the family feud? On 24 Oct 16, Cyrus Mistry was unceremoniously dismissed as Chairman of Tata Sons. Tata Sons is the holding company of the US$ 103 billion Tata conglomerate. The largest…
Russia and the us presidential election
Do intelligence agencies need to re-establish their credibility? On Friday (06 Jan17), US President-elect Donald Trump is finally expected to attend the intelligence briefing, on alleged Russian…
Legal status for robots
With a robotic revolution around the corner, a legal framework is prudent. On 11 Jan 16, it was reported that the European Parliament is preparing to vote, on the first set of comprehensive rules,…
Us expels russian diplomats
On 29 Dec 16, in a rare and provocative gesture, the Obama Administration expelled 35 Russian diplomats and their families; giving them 72 hours to leave the country. President Barak Obama had…
The other Brexiteers
Moves both in Northern Ireland and Scotland point toward remaining in the U.K On the 10th of January 2017, Both Northern Ireland and Scotland made symbolic gestures towards a year of forced unity…
Overseas citizen of india (OCI)
On 08 Jun 16, PM Narendra Modi inaugurated the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, at Bangalore. The celebration is held regularly to celebrate Indian diaspora, across the world. It is now estimated that there…
Terrorism in south india
India’s southern states, comprise of five states and three Union Territories; Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and UTs of Puducherry, Lakshadweep and Andaman & Nicobar…
German terror attack
On 19 Dec 16, an unidentified man ploughed a lorry into a busy Christmas market, in the heart of Berlin, Germany. 12 people were killed, scores injured and the death toll is expected to rise. The man…
Change of Guard
Continuity. That's the buzzword around India's new central bank governor Urjit Patel. It's quite a departure from the fireworks that accompanied his predecessor Raghuram Rajan's appointment and…
Medicine’s Big Breakthrough
Panorama looks at the breakthrough that could change the lives of everyone and everything on the planet. Gene editing is revolutionising medical research and could deliver new treatments - even cures…
NATO set to extend its Afghan support
NATO allies are likely to formally extend their support for Afghan forces after President Barack Obama decided to keep thousands more U.S. troops in Afghanistan than planned through the end of his…
Afghanistan opium trade
On 23 October 2016, UN Office for Drugs & Crime (UNODC) announced that in 2016, Opium cultivation in Afghanistan had grown 43% over 2015. The report shows that 201,000 hectares of land, were used…
The Website Attack
On 21st October 2016, a cyber-attack on Dyn (Domain Name Service provider) disrupted traffic to hundreds of websites including Twitter, Amazon, the Financial Times, Airbnb, PayPal and Spotify,…
After Snowden: How vulnerable is the internet?
The technology pioneers who designed the net's original protocols saw their creation as a way to share information freely across a network of networks. Yet Edward Snowden's leaks of classified…
Accenture ties up with IITs for research into Artificial Intelligence
MUMBAI: Accenture has entered into a joint research collaboration with IIT Bombay and IIT Patna focused on the different application aspects of Artificial Intelligence. The research, focused on IT…