IPA Staff
16474 stories by IPA Staff
India’s First Seizure Of Jihadi Drug Captagon Is A Ominous Sign Of New Threat
By T N Ashok India’s first seizure of Captagon — the notorious “jihadi drug” of the Syrian conflict — is more than a sensational narcotics bust. It is a warning flare. Beneath the ₹182-crore seizure at Mundra Port and Delhi lies a far darker story: the merging of global...
West Bengal’s Earlier Experience Of A Double Engine Govt Was Not Good
By Tirthankar Mitra KOLKATA: Amidst much kerfuffle, a “double engine” government has come to run West Bengal. After the 2026 assembly elections, this state which for nearly five decades has been the epicentre of Opposition politics is however no stranger to “double engine” government but it’s experience with it...
Trump’s Taiwan Policy Faces Threat As His Advisers Warn Of Chinese Aggression
By Ashok Nilakantan Ayers NEW YORK: The island that the world refuses to recognise as a country has once again been reminded of a brutal geopolitical truth: in the contest between the United States and China, Taiwan is indispensable — but still expendable. When President Donald Trump emerged from...
21-Member V D Satheesan-Headed UDF Ministry Sworn In In Kerala
By P. Sreekumaran THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Free travel for women in Kerala State Road Tran sport Corporation (KSRTC) buses from June 15 and a 3000-rupee hike for ASHA workers. These are the first decisions announced by Chief Minister V. D. Satheesan after the first Cabinet meeting of the newly-installed UDF Government...
Five Assembly Elections Witnessed Free Fall Of Democracy Under NDA Regime
By Dr. Ram Puniyani The recent Assembly Elections results (May 2026) were eagerly awaited. In Assam the delimitation helped the Himanta Biswa Sarma to win the elections yet again. His main message was about Ghuspatiye, (infiltrators) and other slogans were floated which spread hate. In Bengal the election looked...
India-Netherlands Seal ‘Strategic Partnership’, Sign 17 Agreements
NEW DELHI: India and the Netherlands announced 17 outcomes at the end of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to that country, which concluded Sunday afternoon. Commitments included deepening bilateral cooperation in semiconductors, critical minerals, renewable energy and green transition, defence co-production, mobility, horticulture and dairying. The Netherlands is...
States’ Capital Expenditure Growth Slows To 5 Per Cent In FY26
NEW DELHI: Capital expenditure by state governments likely grew a modest 5% year-on-year in 2025-26, as fiscally cautious states put the brakes on borrowings despite a moderation in tax revenue growth. Aggregate capital outlay by 18 major states rose 4.7% year-on-year to Rs 6.19 lakh crore in FY26. These...
FTAs, Lower Import Duties & Better Business Environment To Boost FDI Flows
NEW DELHI: Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), reduction in import tariffs and improvement in business environment would encourage higher net foreign capital inflows into India, which have moderated in recent years, ADB Chief Economist Albert Park has said. During 2021-22, India attracted net Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of $38.6 billion,...
Prudential To Acquire 75% Stake In Bharti Life Insurance For ₹3,500 Crore
MUMBAI: Prudential plc on Sunday said it would acquire a 75 per cent stake in Bharti Life Insurance—promoted by billionaire Sunil Mittal’s Bharti Enterprises—for ₹3,500 crore, subject to regulatory approvals. Subsequently, Prudential will reduce its holding in ICICI Prudential Life Insurance to below 10 per cent from its nearly...
India’s Manufacturing Exports Gain Foothold In Newer Markets In FY 26
NEW DELHI: The continued attempts at diversification of Indian exports has led to significant expansion of products and market footprint in 2025-26 generating additional exports of $ 202.2 million The strongest value contribution to the diversification came from advanced engineering and industrial sectors. “The trend highlights a gradual shift...
Decoding Global Geopolitical Impact Of Trump-Xi Summit In Beijing
By Nitya Chakraborty Now that the U.S. President Donald Trump is back to Washington DC. After his two day summit talks in Beijing on May 14 and 15, it is appropriate to decode the gains of the summit. There were four major issues– Taiwan, Iran war, trade deals and...
Gulf Energy Hedge Formalised During Modi Visit Has A New Strategic Depth
By K Raveendran India’s energy security arrangement with the United Arab Emirates marks a shift from transactional crude buying to a more durable architecture of supply assurance, storage access and strategic alignment. For a country that remains heavily dependent on imported oil, the significance of the deal lies not...
Unemployment In India At 5.2 Per Cent In April, Highest In Six Months
By Dr. Gyan Pathak Unemployment in India is on the rise again, which rose to 5.2 per cent in Current Weekly Status (CWS) in April 2026, highest in the last six months. Worker Population Ratio (WPR) declined to as low as 39.5 per cent the lowest in the last...
Indian Citizens Have To Adapt To Continuing Threats To Energy Security
By T N Ashok For four years, Indian motorists had been shielded from the brutal arithmetic of global oil markets. Petrol and diesel prices barely moved upwards even as crude swung wildly across international exchanges, governments collapsed elsewhere under inflationary pressure, and energy-importing nations passed costs directly to consumers....
Despite Absence Of Joint Declaration, BRICS Meeting In New Delhi Has Shared Some Common Anxieties
By R. Suryamurthy The New Delhi meeting of BRICS foreign ministers was intended to project the image of a confident and expanding coalition of emerging powers preparing to reshape the architecture of global trade, finance and governance. Instead, what emerged from the two-day gathering was a revealing portrait of...
New Kerala Ministry Swearing In On May 18; Ramesh Still Unmollified
By P. Sreekumaran THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the selection of Vadasseri Damodaran Satheesan as the new Kerala Chief Minister 10 days after the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) swept the Assembly election, the stage is set for hard bargaining for ministerial berths and portfolios. Satheesan, 61, will be sworn in at...
Non-BJP Political Parties Are Worried As SIR Verification Process Starts In June
By Jag Mohan Thaken CHANDIGARH: When the sound of a wolf’s footsteps is heard, some animals, even of opposite nature, become alert, begin to warn up to one another and gather in groups. A similar kind of stir has now begun to be seen in Punjab. Whether it is...
IPL Reaches Its Most Exciting Moment As Battle Starts For Play-Offs
By T N Ashok There is a moment in every IPL season when the spreadsheet stops lying. The net run rates, the qualification scenarios, the “if Team A wins and Team B loses by more than X runs” calculus — all of it collapses into something far simpler and...
