MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#41: 27 JANUARY 2020 India: Left-wing Extremism in 2019: State of Play Bibhu Prasad Routray – Abstract In 2019, the Government of India and state governments affected by Left-wing Extremism (LWE) continued to take steps to deal with what used to be the country’s ‘biggest internal security challenge’. Today, in terms of its capacities […]
MANTRAYA POLICY BRIEF#31: 12 NOVEMBER 2019 Nagaland: Conflict Fragility, Intractability, and Resolution Bibhu Prasad Routray – Abstract More than four years after it signed the framework agreement with the NSCN-IM in 2015, New Delhi appears distant from signing a final peace deal in the restive state of Nagaland. Conducted under the close of watch of […]
MANTRAYA POLICY BRIEF#30: 31 OCTOBER 2019 Death of Baghdadi: Specter of Radicalization & Violent Extremism Bibhu Prasad Routray – Abstract The killing of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been hailed as a success in dealing a death blow to the Islamic state leadership and organization. Despite such claims of early success of counter terrorism (CT) operations, […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#40: 25 SEPTEMBER 2019 In the Naxal heartland: A ‘turnaround’ in sight? Bibhu Prasad Routray – Abstract Since 2018 (till August 2019), over 350 cadres of the Communist Party of India (CPI-Maoist) have been killed in various states of India. Rapid cadre depletion and continuous security force operations have dented the group’s ability to […]
MANTRAYA SPECIAL REPORT#19: 27 AUGUST 2019 Afghan Drug Trail & the Indian Drug Syndicates Bibhu Prasad Routray & Shanthie Mariet D’Souza – Abstract Recurrent arrests of Indian drug smugglers and Afghan nationals have brought renewed focus on the increase in smuggling of heroin from Afghanistan into India. The nefarious trade has not only grown in […]
MANTRAYA SPECIAL REPORT#18: 01 AUGUST 2019 The Afghanistan-India Drug Trail Bibhu Prasad Routray & Shanthie Mariet D’Souza – Abstract Proximity to the Golden Crescent, steady rise in domestic demand, and the thriving illicit networks’ ability to exploit the ungoverned spaces and porous borders are among the factors that are making India a new destination of […]
MANTRAYA POLICY BRIEF#29: 23 JULY 2019 Left-wing Extremism in India: Revisiting the ‘new’ Strategy Bibhu Prasad Routray – Abstract The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in New Delhi, in its second term, is making renewed attempts to end left-wing extremism (LWE). The broad parameters of the new strategy consist of plans to target the extremists […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#38: 10 JULY 2019 ‘Negative Peace’: Conflict Economy of Naga Insurgency Bibhu Prasad Routray – Abstract How does an insurgency movement engaged in peace talks with the government generate its finances? Should the government attempt to curb its extortion activities that retains not only its structural violence instrumentalities, but also the options of indefinitely […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#36: 05 MAY 2019 Changing India and Iran Relations in the age of US Sanctions Shanthie Mariet D’Souza – Abstract The recent Trump administration’s refusal to extend the waiver it had granted to eight countries including India and China from stopping the import of crude oil from Iran, has yet again put New Delhi’s […]
MANTRAYA ANALYSIS#35: 19 MARCH 2019 Cattle Smuggling from India to Bangladesh: Scale, Nexus & Prevention Attempts Pallavi Banerjee – Abstract According to a 2016 estimate, 3000 cows are smuggled across the Indo-Bangladesh border each day. It is a trade that is estimated to be worth US$500 million. Since the BJP government came to power in […]