Political Line newsletter: Transparency saves lives
The crash of Air India 171 that killed hundreds — the exact number is yet to be announced — is turning out to be another case of extreme information management rather than information sharing. While there is scarcity of authentic information, people — many with no technical expertise — have theories that are proliferating wildly through social media.
As it turns out, it's not just the armed forces that are above questioning. It seems even private companies are entitled to the protection of silence. Any crash is a subject of investigation, which must, in fairness, cover all aspects, including safety practices, the airline's management, and pilot error. We hope that Air India is as transparent as it promises to be.
Free, open, and critical exchange of facts, and opinion based on accurate information in the public domain are the essential ingredients of a vibrant and successful society. More importantly, these are essential for good governance, in both public and private sectors.
Boeing, the maker of the aircraft that crashed, sought to punish whistleblowers who flagged serious security concerns regarding its 787 series, according to American media reporting. Free, fair, timely, and accurate information is endangered by two distinct threats: the reluctance of its custodians to share it; and the spread of misinformation by people motivated by reasons other than the truth. We are left with a barrage of propaganda and misinformation.
A free society in which institutions, companies, and people in authority, in both the private and public sectors are held accountable and are obligated to face questions from the people, will be better equipped to prevent and manage all disasters.
Let me share with you one example of how openness and transparency in place of secrecy turned around a governance challenge in the undivided State of Andhra Pradesh (AP). AP was a hotspot of HIV infections, and the stigma associated with it drove more and more patients into leading a secret life, with people vulnerable to the virus avoiding testing. Nine out of 10 with the infection did not know they had it, and continued to be carriers of the virus.
Asok Kumar, an IAS officer in charge of the AIDS control mission, developed a campaign in 2006 titled Be Bold, which encouraged those carrying the human immunodeficiency virus to come out and socialise publicly.
The knowledge that they were not alone gave people the courage to speak about the illness, and many found life partners through the information-exchange events. The experiment took a dramatic turn when the then Chief Minister of the State, Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, decided to undergo an HIV test in public view in 2006. He also asked his Cabinet members to join in, and 70 MLAs also got tested. The secrecy of HIV testing was removed significantly, and the number of tests grew rapidly.
As part of the campaign that ran for 13 months, 18 lakh tests were done, compared to around 5 lakh the previous year. More than 1 lakh tested positive; as testing increased and more people took preventive measures and medicines, prevalence declined. In 2021-22, a total of 23,57,260 people were tested for HIV (AP was bifurcated by then), and 13,815 were diagnosed with the infection, a significant reduction in prevalence.
All situations of governance deficiency and crises can be mitigated by the sharing of accurate, reliable information in a timely manner, leading to public discussions — even public outcry — based on it. A better-informed public can lead to better social and corporate outcomes. A public armed with knowledge can even prevent air crashes.
Federalism Tract -Notes on Indian diversity
Police state
The US Federal government led by President Donald Trump took control of the California National Guard, which is usually under the command of the State Governor, to quell street riots in protests against immigration law enforcement. Additionally, the Marines were deployed in Los Angeles. California State has won the first legal challenge, in which the judge held that the Federal government overstepped its power in taking over the command of the National Guard. This case, which is certain to reach the Supreme Court, will be a milestone in US federalism.
Mother of confusion
Tamil writer Perumal Murugan corrects Kamal Hassan who misspoke on Tamil being the mother of Kannada and then doubled down on his argument. Forget identifying the mother of any language, identifying the mother of a human being is also not as easy as it used to be. Whether someone is the father or mother of a child, in a biological sense, might sound a rather easy determination to be made. But a transgender couple in Kerala had a biological child: the person who gave birth to the baby now identifies as a male, and the person who impregnated them now identifies as a woman. But the local municipality insisted on identifying 'mother' and 'father,' with 'transgender' written in brackets, in the birth certificate of the child. The couple moved the Kerala High Court with the plea they be called 'parent', instead of 'mother' or 'father.' The Kerala HC has allowed the plea and ordered the municipality to issue a certificate with their names mentioned as 'parent'.
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Slamming 50% Trump tariffs, farmer leader Chaduni urges ban on US firms in India
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News18
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US is now Tariff King of the world: Former diplomat Vikas Swarup
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If there is a positive outcome of the Alaska talks then I am 100% sure that the Russia sanctions will be off the table because Putin is not going to accept a ceasefire and yet be saddled with economic sanctions," he and the US initiated talks for a just, balanced, and mutually beneficial Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) in March this year, aiming to complete the first stage of the Agreement by October-November April 2, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order for reciprocal tariffs on various trade partners, imposing varied tariffs in the range of 10-50 per subsequently kept the tariffs in abeyance for 90 days, while imposing a 10 per cent baseline tariff. 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The Hindu
an hour ago
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A war game-changer in a battle for influence in Asia
The world first noticed a massive shift in how wars are fought during the second Nagorno-Karabakh conflict (2020): the increasingly integral role that drones play. For India and Pakistan, Operation Sindoor (May 7-10) cemented this shift, as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) moved from serving purely reconnaissance needs to becoming instrumental for precision strikes. An exercise of modernisation In the aftermath of the clashes, India is trying to upgrade and modernise its military. In 2024, India finalised an order for 31 MQ-9B Reapers from the United States, including SkyGuardian and SeaGuardian models. These aircraft will supplement India's need for maritime domain awareness and reinforce the strategic partnership between the countries. Still, this partially addresses just one of the needs of a country with its varied terrains and multiple contested borders. Given its vast border territories with Pakistan and China in high-altitude regions, India requires systems that are capable of high-altitude surveillance — larger fixed-wing long-range systems that can deliver significant payloads during precision strikes, and smaller, cost-effective systems for precision strikes. Currently, the unmanned platforms that India has in operation address only some of these requirements. Israeli systems such as the relatively older Harop loitering munition and the medium-altitude long-range Heron are useful for aerial strikes and surveillance, respectively. But they are not the most advanced systems on the market. Apart from these, India largely operated legacy systems that were imported prior to the last decade and some indigenous models. Despite the long defence relationship between the two countries, as India seeks to procure state-of-the-art drones, it no longer makes sense for it to look largely to the U.S. for outright purchases. There is likely to be a shift where the U.S. becomes more important for components such as power plants and electronic payloads. Conversations about leading unmanned aerial systems invariably come back to the U.S., China, Türkiye, and Israel. However, recent reports question whether American drones are good enough even to meet their domestic demands, let alone dominate the export market. A New York Times article, written by an observer of exercises with U.S. drone companies, revealed the growing gap between American systems and those made by Russia and China. Congruent with these concerns, the 'US Drone Dominance' executive order was rolled out with massive plans for American drone production. A CNAS report finds that the U.S.'s adherence to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) has resulted in it falling far behind China and Türkiye in the UAV export market, making up only 8% of the market as of the end of 2023. Although recent and upcoming reforms to the MTCR will allow the U.S. to tap into the export market more, it already lags behind. Today, India finds itself trying to fill these gaps in its arsenal through imports, joint ventures and domestic production, largely relying on Israel and European countries. Given the state of its ties with both China and Türkiye at the moment, India is unlikely to rely on either country for critical defence technologies. As it attempts to further its own interests, India should also leverage its technological advancements to become a supplier of fixed-wing UAVs for the broader Indo-Pacific region. The China factor A number of countries, including Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan have relations with China that can only be described as strained at best. Maritime Domain Awareness is essential for these countries to monitor and counter China's use of 'gray-zone' warfare, using agents such as their coast guard and maritime militia, to enforce disputed territorial claims. This also enables them to protect their sovereignty and safeguard vital economic interests, such as fisheries and energy exploration, from constant encroachment. Israel finds itself otherwise preoccupied with its long and drawn-out conflict in West Asia, and is unlikely to be a reliable supplier to the region. With the U.S. struggling to remain in the race, Türkiye is the primary option for procuring high-performance and cost-effective systems. Given that India and Türkiye find themselves in a fairly adversarial relationship, it is in India's interest to prevent Türkiye from expanding its sphere of influence through drone diplomacy. Many countries in the Indo-Pacific also share similar geographies with India, and, consequently, a pressing need for systems tailored to maritime domain awareness and high-altitude border patrol. If India were to develop systems to suit its own needs, they would also suit the strategic requirements of its not-so-distant neighbours. A contested space The U.S.-shaped vacuum in the drone market within the Indo-Pacific, is becoming a highly contested space that India would benefit from filling. Not only would it boost trade and influence with a host of countries but it would also fulfil the country's own strategic needs. Despite being held back by bureaucratic red tape and a public sector dominated defence sector, it would benefit India to capitalise on its existing ties with Israel and utilise its learnings from joint production ventures to better its domestic UAV ecosystem. Beyond just producing everything domestically, technology-sharing regimes with like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific would further mutual interests and foster trust-based relationships in a region that is becoming increasingly polarised. Adya Madhavan is Research Analyst, The Takshashila Institution
