All Things Policy

Last week, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare came up with a report on the The Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, 2020 which was introduced in Lok Sabha on 14 September 2020. The Bill seeks

India's welfare architecture has changed over time. But have these changes been for the better? Apurva Kumar and Sarthak Pradhan discuss the evolution of welfare systems in India.

Russia recently attempted to throttle Twitter, while China has blocked access to Signal and instituted new rules which require social media users to have government-issued credentials. These moves are in line with global efforts to

The first-ever Quad leaders summit ended with leaders of the US, India, Japan and Australia agreeing to work towards furthering shared values and interests. They also outlined an agenda for vaccine deployment, tackling climate change and

A recent report indicates China is doubling the number of its nuclear missile silos. Does this suggest Beijing is moving towards a hair-trigger's launch-on-warning posture? Suyash Desai, Manoj Kewalramani and Aditya Ramanathan weigh the evidence.

A new report from air technology company IQAir concludes that despite an 11% reduction in PM2.5 levels, India emerged as the world's third-most polluted country. India's air quality has serious ramifications for both public health and the

The US military’s Indo-Pacific Command is seeking additional funding to strengthen the US security umbrella in the region under the Pacific Deterrence Initiative(PDI). The funding will partly go towards building a network of precision

As we record this episode, residents in East Delhi are facing an acute water shortage. The shortages come soon after the Delhi Government went to the Supreme Court against the state of Haryana, highlighting the increasingly polluted

In early March, Google announced that it would not support alternatives to third-party cookies to track user behaviour at an individual level. It will also begin public tests for FLoC (Federated Learning of Cohorts), its proposed standard to target ads

A draft agreement proposed by the US to “jump-start” the peace talks in Afghanistan envisages the formation of a transition government with the Taliban. Anand Arni talks to Suyash Desai about the proposal and what it portends for the Afghan people.

Does the government's demand for funds actually match the outcomes it has promised?

China’s Two Sessions prioritised the roadmap for the country’s 14th Five Year Plan and flagged areas of development to achieve sustainable growth and lead innovation in the future. Manoj Kewalramani and Suyash Desai discuss the NPC’s

Mumbai, one of the most densely populated cities, is reeling under growing levels of air pollution. Compared to 27 other cities globally, Mumbai bears some of the highest costs as a percentage of the GDP because of air pollution-related health effects.

Electronic evidence has become an integral part of criminal investigations. This often requires access to data stored in other jurisdictions. What processes are in place in India today to make this happen? How are other countries approaching

The Russian LNG carrier Christoph De Margerie’s latest voyage along the NSR is being seen as a watershed. Is Moscow’s dream of year-round access to the NSR closer to reality than previously thought?

The COVID-19 pandemic brought along with it increased transmission of disinformation as well. Can 'citizen science' offer solutions?

China’s National People’s Congress Standing Committee passed a law authorizing its coastguard to open fire on foreign vessels in the contested waters around its periphery. Suyash Desai and Anirudh Kanisetti discuss what it means for regional security and

Last week the government notified the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. The rules have some serious implications for how Internet content creators and platforms are going to function in India.

China has publicized its current naval strategy of “Near Seas Defense and Far Seas Protection,” which calls for the People’s Liberation Army Navy to expand the geographic and mission scope of its operations.

Nearly 2,200 years ago, the Greek historian Polybius tried to analyze how Rome's armies vanquished the world-conquering Hellenistic armies centered on the Macedonian pike-phalanx.

Imagine a world of endless meadow and hills, lit by the glow of a nearby gas giant. Here, over hundreds of millions of years, birds evolve into a dizzying array of strange shapes and forms reminiscent of the grandeur and diversity of life on earth.

Brazil is preparing to launch Amazônia-1, its first indigenously made earth-observation satellite, from Sriharikota in just a few days.

Russia has been the largest supplier of LNG to Europe. Being the hydrocarbon bridge between Western, Central and Eastern Europe, Ukraine is heavily dependent on transit fees from Russia.

Australia has come up with a code to make Google and Facebook negotiate with news outlets and pay for content that they host. The tech giants have reacted by threatening to stop their services in Australia.

Totally amicable relations between the countries of Asia might seem hopelessly idealistic today - but about a hundred years ago, a wave of intellectuals in India and China believed that it was not only realistic but inevitable.