Manoj Ambat's Blog dealing with Defence, Foreign Affairs, Strategic Affairs and Politics

Image credits- Flickr / MEA Official photo gallery, Government of India Source- The National Interest Authors- Jon Huntsman Jr & Bharath Gopalaswamy Although India’s economic story has been the subject of much discussion in the United States in the past decade, its foreign policy has not received similar attention. This has something to do with the consensus in Washington about India’s hesitancy in the exercise of realpolitik. Last month, however, India’s newly appointed foreign secretary and leading strategist Subrahmanyam Jaishankar delivered an attention getter. In a major speech, Jaishankar emphasized that India was intent on playing the role of a “leading” instead a “balancing” power in Asia. This statement comes as a significant shift to the prevailing perceptions concerning India’s reluctance to actualize its role as a great power.   Until recently, India was seen as a power that could serve as a counterweight to China and help the United States in bal

Param Super Computer  ( Image source- Wikimedia Commons / Credits- CDAC) Source- The Diplomat Authors- Asit K. Biswas & Kris Hartley “Everyone under 18 has only one guru, Google guru,” said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a Nasscom event in early March. He insisted that India’s IT industry, where innovation plays a critical role, is successful because government is “not there anywhere.” By implying that state participation stifles industry growth, this widespread sentiment belittles industrial planning and the promotion of particular sectors or corporate champions. Does Modi’s statement about the absence of government support India’s commitment to R&D and innovative capacity? Innovation is a driver of national competitive advantage, and ultimately the individual is the primary source of innovation. Therefore, connecting human development and government intervention becomes a crucial task in supporting growth strategies. Following India’s latest budget,

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Image credits- Flickr / MEA Official gallery Source- The Diplomat Author- Harsh V. Pant Just a year back, the world’s largest and oldest democracies seemed on a collision course over the Khobragade affair. Today, thanks to deft diplomacy by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his team, Washington and Delhi stand on the cusp of a potentially transformative moment in their bilateral ties. When Modi visited the U.S. in September, his domestic critics wanted to discredit him by asking where the substance was. They argued that Modi’s visit was about style; that the optics overpowered the real issues that were bedeviling the relationship. When Modi invited Obama as the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in Delhi, the critics came back arguing that there was little point to inviting Obama, who had become a lame-duck president with the defeat of the Democrats in November 2014 elections. But what Modi and Obama have been able to accomplish in the last two days underscor

Love your country. Your country is the land where your parents sleep, where is spoken that language in which  the chosen of your heart, blushing, whispered the first word of love; it is the home that God has given you that  by striving to perfect yourselves therein you may prepare to ascend to him-Giuseppe Mazzini There is no feeling like that of being an Indian, the pride that runs through your blood when you hear the national anthem "Jana Gana Mana" being played, when you see the magnificent parade led by our armed forces down the Rajpath on the Republic day, when you see the space craft sent by us reach Mars. It has been 66 years since India became a republic, when it threw the last vestiges of colonialism and became it's own masters, giving itself a new constitution. At the time of the Independence, India was born with problems all around. There was this issue of partition which has seen two independent countries being born namely India and Pakistan. The

Image credits- Flickr / MEA Official Image Source- The National Interest Author- Gordon G. Chang President and Mrs. Obama are now on their way to what may be the world’s most important city at mid-century. Are they going to Beijing? No, they will be traveling to New Delhi. The trip is historic. For the first time, an American leader will attend Republic Day celebrations in the Indian capital, and Obama will be the first U.S. president to visit India twice while in office. Moreover, this is the first time, in recent memory, that a White House occupant has taken a long-distance flight to just one destination. The trip has just about everything. The president and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will conduct wide-ranging discussions on, among other topics, climate change, education, nuclear power, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran. There will also be pomp aplenty. India’s January 26 events, commemorating the adoption of the Indian constitution, are among the world’s mo

GSLV- Mark II ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons/ ISRO) Source- The Diplomat Author- Sudha Ramachandran India recently made history, when its Mars Orbiter Mission successfully entered the Martian orbit. In doing so, it became the first country to enter Mars’ orbit on its first attempt and also the first Asian country to reach the red planet. Missions to Mars have rarely been successful. Before India’s Mangalyaan (Sanskrit for Mars-craft), only the United States, the Soviet Union, and Europe had entered Mars orbit. India is part of an elite club. What makes India’s Mars mission all the more remarkable is its low cost. With a price tag of just $70 million, it is the least expensive inter-planetary mission ever. The U.S. Maven orbiter, which arrived at Mars two days before Mangalyaan, cost NASA a whopping $671 million in comparison. Experts have pointed out that the enormous cost difference between Mangalyaan and Maven is because the Indian Mars-craft is far simp

Image courtesy- Wikipedia Commons From "continued and rapid" modernisation of the armed forces to a strong indigenous defence industrial base (DIB), from a national commission for ex-servicemen to credible deterrence and second-strike capability, Congress promised all on the military front in its manifesto released on Wednesday.  "India's security preparedness will be based on a comprehensive security doctrine that combines conventional and strategic measures... The Congress pledges to make India's defence forces technology-enabled and equipped with modern weapons, aircraft, ships and delivery systems to repel any threat from land, sea or air," it said.  Experts, however, were left unimpressed. "There were no systemic reforms either to build a strong DIB, genuinely integrate the Service headquarters with the defence ministry or reform the cumbersome arms procurement procedures over the last 10 years of UPA rule," said a senior Army officer. Ye

Indian inventions and discoveries have been instrumental in shaping the face of the current modern world. We picked up 20 such interesting findings out of a whole bunch that will make you say, “I didn’t know that”.......... http://www.storypick.com/20-clever-inventions-probably-didnt-know-made-indians/

Pic courtesy- The author Meditation has the potential to literally transform the world. In 1978, what is known as the “Maharishi Effect” took place when a group of 7000 individuals over the course of 3 weeks were meditating in hopes of positively effecting the surrounding city.  They were able to literally transform the collective energy of the city which reduced global crime rates, violence, and casualties during the times of their meditation by an average of 16%. Suicide rates a nd automobile accidents also were reduced with all variables accounted for. In fact, there was a 72% reduction in terrorist activity during the times at which this group was meditation. Almost 50 studies have been done further confirming the benefits of global meditation and it's direct impact on everything in the world, even so far as to have the results published in the Journal of Crime and Justice in 1981. We know meditation has endless health and psychological benefits, but it is now being expl

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20131129/DEFREG/311290012/India-Gives-Navy-Control-Andaman-Nicobar-Command

http://thediplomat.com/flashpoints-blog/2013/11/05/to-hedge-its-bets-russia-is-encircling-china/

Congrats to Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for launching the Mangalyan (Mars probe) successfully. Followed every movement of the launch and felt proud to be born to this great country. Very best to one and all who are involved in the project. Vande Mathram  —

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/21085/doctor-charges-just-rs-5.html