SADF Research Report 5 – Water Issue – Tharparkar New Coal-Based Energy Production
Abstract
This research addresses the impact of coal-fired power plants on water stress and environmental conservation within the geopolitical framework of the Chinese CPEC’s (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor) environmental policy and the COPS-21 environmental targets. Our case-study analysis concerns the new coal-based energy hub in the Tharparkar district of Sindh, Pakistan....
Focus 64 – Smart Governance in times of extreme Natural Disasters: An Introspection. The...
Abstract
Every year, the Bay of Bengal coast shared between India and Bangladesh is struck by one or more cyclonic storms during both pre- and post- monsoon seasons. Although the inhabitants of this region remain mentally prepared to withstand the devastation caused by natural calamities, they don’t have adequate financial...
Focus 63 – Macro and Micro Evidence: Labour Reforms Do Not Facilitate Growth in...
Abstract
Three Indian states (Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat) recently adopted new and significant labour reforms amidst the COVID-19 pandemic - supporting companies and businesses willing to more easily hire and fire employees in the hope that this will unshackle industries and attract investments. However, some economists and workers’...
COMMENT 195 – On the Asian Century, Pax Sinica & Beyond (XII): The Sino-Iranian...
Iran and China have been exploring the possibility of a strategic alliance since 2016. If implemented fully, it will not only reshape global geo-economics and geo-politics but also have severe impacts on both the Persian Gulf and South Asia. According to a recently leaked draft agreement, the alliance amounts...
Focus 62 – Indian Urban Policy for Environmental Sustainability: The Role of Behavioural...
Abstract
The adoption of practices such as washing hands for a minimum of 20 seconds, excessive and frequent sanitisation, maintaining physical distance, etc. has compelled us to change our behaviours and adapt to the crisis, even if reluctantly. Amidst this pandemic, the world continues to face an ongoing environmental crisis....
COMMENT 194 – Resurgent Rebellion in Balochistan
During the last few months, the security situation in Balochistan witnessed an increase in militancy. It seems that the escalating violence in the region is linked with the growing Chinese presence and intensified activities by the Pakistani armed forces and the Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI). This SADF Comment subscribes to...
COMMENT 193 – The Curious Case of Media ‘freedom’ in Pakistan
Pakistan yet again featured on global headlines when on Tuesday, May 21 2020, a journalist, relatively critical of the country’s military and security agencies, was kidnapped in broad daylight by men in police uniforms. Matiullah Jan, who works in Islamabad, was picked up at around 11 a.m. by 10...
WORKING PAPER 22 – Pakistan’s Pandemic Policies
Abstract
The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan is not only leading to severe economic and social impacts but is also accompanied by negative political ramifications, particularly for the country’s civil-military relations. Pakistan is also presently hit by one of the worst locust plagues in decades. The federal...
Focus 61 – EU-India Summit: Vision and Mission
Keywords
India, European Union, strategic partnership, multilateralism
India and the European Union are committed to a framework for strategic cooperation until 2025. They have vowed to cooperate in their response to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as within the United Nations Security Council. Towards this end, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held...
COMMENT 192 – Contextualising Pakistan’s Prime Minister’s Parliamentary Eulogy of Osama Bin Laden
On June 25, 2020, Pakistan’s military-backed Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan made a statement in the National Assembly in which he glorified Osama Bin Laden (OBL) as a ‘martyr’, using the term shaheed. This is without doubt a landmark event which needs a closer assessment. This SADF Comment aims...