A better understanding of strategy allows us to make informed policy
Small teams operating as stay-behind parties in counter terrorism play a crucial role in maintaining pressure on terrorists.
These are some of the most difficult operations, as to stay undetected among hostile populations itself is a major challenge..
Small team operations, as depicted in popular cinema, often show heavily armed commandos with night vision goggles, hands-free communication, flash grenades, and even small robots that can enter and detect hidden terrorists with minimal risk.
For Indian troops at the turn of the century, this was a fairy tale. They relied on overwhelming manpower, lights, & generators bought from regimental funds, rocket launchers, & even IEDs to bring down entire structures. But there were a few artists, who relied on instincts and the visualisation of their own troops & terrorist actions to achieve their aims, often with minimal collateral damage.
Surabhi’s nuptials, a union that sparked joy and celebration amongst friends and family alike. Surabhi Santosh, the beautiful and accomplished daughter of Col Santosh, a dear friend and mentor, had embarked on a journey to find her match amidst the complexities of her dual career as an actor and lawyer.
Visited my friend Kikru in Kohima. The trip was steeped in Naga culture, from the Sekrenyi festival’s rice beer to wildlife conservation tales at Dzuleke. I learned about the significant reconciliation in Khonoma village, with a strategic takeaway reflecting a stronger Indian-Naga identity and regional ethnic concerns.
The Data Protection Bill has been withdrawn, with a statement that a ‘comprehensive legal framework is being worked upon’. This is an admission that the legislative effort was piecemeal and was fundamentally flawed. Introspection on the ‘why’ is called for! That there is a long pending legal void on protection of a fundamental right does not … Read moreThe Strategic Perspective On Data Protection
The long wait of the Indian citizen for a law to protect the right to privacy is a wait for Godot. This has come with increasing costs. In this unfolding theatre of the absurd. WhatsApp, the messaging service owned by Facebook (infamous for breaching privacy ) has filed a case against the GoI to protect the privacy … Read moreIndian Privacy Rights – A Long Wait For Godot
August 15, 2020, marked the 74th Independence Day for India. For a civilisational nation with a 5000-year history, 73 years marks just a blip in time. The year 2020; annus horribilis has unique challenges, the ritualistic celebration of Independence, gives a semblance of normality in challenging and difficult times. A global pandemic, disrupted economy and … Read moreCelebrating Independence 2020 Under Digital Slavery!!!
‘May you live in interesting times’ is an ancient Chinese curse. The elegance and subtlety of that particular curse are very evident this week as the world slips into interesting times. The Coronavirus and the Russian and Saudi actions on drastically cutting the price of oil while increasing production has delivered twin shocks to the … Read moreInteresting Times
The Ides of March has since been used to caution all rulers, that all warnings to a sovereign need to be heeded and only disregarded after proper study. With de-escalation signals emanating from the LAC, a fresh digital salvo with much more strategic punch than salami slicing of the borders greeted India and its policy … Read moreChinese Digital Paw Marks on India’s Critical Infrastructure
Published in dailyO on 05-11-2019 WhatsApp, a US company, has notified 1,400 users internationally in various nations. Multiple methods of legal recourse will be attempted by the victims in various legal jurisdictions including India, that will have global political and diplomatic repercussions. The fallout from this scandal might not be containable within Indian officialdom and … Read morePegasus snooping scandal and the privacy debate
“We, the willing, led by the ambitious, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, for so long, with so little, we are now qualified to do anything with nothing.” Anonymous Spoofs like the above on the original quote by Konstantin Josef Jireček were common in the Rashtriya Rifle units employed … Read moreAnything With Nothing
The matter of General Soleimani, when examined jus ad bellum is a unilateral action that violates the rules-based international order that India supports. That said, it won’t be the first time in history that a nation has assassinated an official of another country, nor is it likely to be the last. But as far as the laws that regulate … Read moreL’Affaire Gen Soleimani
The Panchatantra is a series of ancient inter-woven Indian fables, many of which deploy metaphors of animals with human virtues and vices. According to its own narrative, it illustrates, for the benefit of three ignorant princes, the central Hindu principles of nīti or ‘the wise conduct of life‘. The Panchatantra is considered a treatise on political science and human … Read moreWe Need A Digital Panchatantra
The trade and tech wars unleashed by the US President Trump relentlessly pursuing America First has two underpinnings. The trade wars have to do with the impact of globalisation on the domestic political front wherein, rising unemployment and economic disparity has given rise to a populist President. President Trump represents a political shift that has … Read moreTech Diplomacy Needs Tech Entreprenuers
The discourse on matters strategic and national security in India has always been a matter of what-ifs and missed opportunities. A lack of coherence in protecting our national interests and half baked initiatives that mostly play to the gallery is the only common thread in our brief seven decades since Independence. In the information age … Read moreOn Matters of Data Sovereignty
The world of cybersecurity and the national security pundits are in turmoil and the reasons for this is one two-letter word called 5G and a company called Huawei. In a delicious turn of events that should rewrite the scriptures of cybersecurity standards and narrative, the Western world is trapped in the dogma they created and … Read moreHuawei 5G And The Trusted Vendor
Published in Business Today 2019. Economic liberalisation, globalisation and Information Technology (IT) are intertwined in our minds as all three took place simultaneously in India in the early 1990s, doing away with the infamous Licence Raj that used to control the country’s economy. But our policymakers need to appreciate that all three have different nuances … Read moreBreak Free From Data Colonialism
Published in mynation.com in 2018. The information age has seen a new type of colonialisim that has taken root — a colonialism whose chief driving force has been the relentless pursuit of data and the riches that accrue to its owners.
An essay published in the Asian Age in 2018. The need to regulate cyberspace is obvious, that these are being sabotaged by vested interests which see India as the largest single market for data as the Chinese have carefully protected their data flows and have domestic equivalents to Western giants is known.
An Article in DailyO published in 2017. Mythology, metaphors and sentiments masquerade for critical and coherent thinking when it comes to national security.