IDR Blog
New Highways in Xinjiang ..for Pakistani fish?
Beijing has decided to invest US $ 24.8 billion (170 bn yuan) for constructing a network of highways in Xinjiang …for improving connectivity with Pakistan. This is the official justification. China plans to also use this huge amount (some 50% the amount of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor) to build a “trade hub by linking countries...
Would a Non-Lapsable Defence Modernisation Fund Work?
One idea that keeps resurfacing in discussions on the defence budget is the creation of a non-lapsable defence modernisation fund (DMF) to harvest the money that remains unspent, especially under the capital segment, at the end of the financial year. In 2015-16, a sum of Rs. 85,894.44 crore was allocated for capital expenditure of the three...
Capt Bharat Verma – A Personal Remembrance
Long before Prime Minister Modi gave a vision of ‘Make in India’ initiative to make India global hub of manufacturing, Capt. (R) Bharat Verma was the first person who in 2005-2006, advised government of the time to take necessary steps to make India a global hub of weapon’s manufacturing. Being founder and Chief Editor of prestigious...
How do we Modernise the Indian Military in Times of Inadequate Defence Budgets?
With the announcement of Budget 2017-18 on Feb 01, 2017, yet another opportunity to modernize the Indian military has come and gone unutilised, without as much as raising a whimper among the masses, the media and those in authority. Paeans have been sung about the government’s alacrity in coming up with a visionary yet realistic annual...
Afghanistan: Sanctions on Hekmatyar Lifted; Eyes on Russia
This action by the UNSC is precisely what they had requested nearly two months ago. This sudden development, as I have previously warned, should be met with great skepticism not only for the regional actors involved, but also concerning the ever changing role of Russia. The current situation regarding Russia and Hekmatyar is an abrupt change to...