The US is not going to be able to mount a concerted 'Western strategy' against China or Russia in the present international milieu, predicts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
There has been overwhelming elation from across United States from Indian American community leaders and activists over the decision by the government of India to appoint Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao as the new Indian Ambassador to the US, to succeed Meera Shankar whose term ends on July 31 after which she is expected to go into retirement from the Indian Foreign Service.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's initiative against corruption seems to be going a long way. On Thursday, details of the assets of nearly 80,000 government officials was made public on the official website of the state government. He added that it would take over a month's time to upload all the details," It's a lot of data these are details of lakhs of officials."
If push comes to shove, Trump is probably planning to order the US army to clear his path for a second term. What if the armed forces refuse to obey their commander-in-chief?, asks Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Here's how an Indian Foreign Service officer climbs the career ladder.
'The hardliners in Delhi are in for a big disappointment,' predicts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
How should one interpret the new bonhomie between the two nations?
Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has brought about a coup in North Block by bringing an Indian Foreign Service officer Venu Rajamoni as Joint Secretary to head multilateral institutions division.
Veteran diplomat Ranjan Mathai on Monday assumed charge as new Foreign Secretary succeeding Nirupama Rao and said he would try and work to restore "trust and confidence" in Indo-Pak relations.
PM Modi had in the past rejected requests from some ministers for appointment of secretaries who were considered close to them.
Disgraced diplomat Madhuri Gupta, accused of passing sensitive information to Pakistani intelligence officials, on Friday alleged before a Delhi court that the jail authorities in the national capital were harassing her. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kaveri Baweja sought a response from Tihar jail authorities on an application filed by the Indian Foreign Service Grade-B officer. "Tihar jail authorities are harassing me and threatening to implicate me," she said.
Both have been robustly muscular leaders who began as immensely charismatic politicians conveying an impression that they were makers of history, raring to go. Both have been hyperactive on the world stage. But in the final analysis, Abe is departing on a sombre note, unceremoniously and apologetically, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Mubeena, mother of Shah Faisal, in Srinagar was elated when her son was declared the topper.
A young domestic help hailing from Jharkhand has accused a senior Indian Foreign Service officer of sexually assaulting her while he was posted in Kenya and approached the police seeking his arrest. While the Ministry of External Affairs said it will look into the allegations, the Delhi Police registered a case against Ketan Shukla, a 1986-batch IFS officer now posted in Ahmedabad, charging him with rape and criminal intimidation.
'What the northern Indian states lack is responsive politics based on the principles of development, social justice and equality.' 'A cut-and-paste job cannot make up for such lethal deficiency,' observes says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Biden's promise of returning to 'normalcy' after Trump appears to mean that the same old politicians, who are responsible for the 'endless wars' in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, are being brought out of the woodwork after four years,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs wags his finger at an Indian official on Monday morning. He later threatened to pull his boss out of the talks!
The Delhi police chargesheeted disgraced diplomat Madhuri Gupta on Tuesday accusing her of passing secret information to Pakistan's Inter State Intelligence during her posting in Islamabad.
'Bush was too committed towards Indo-US relations. I don't know if Obama is as committed.' Former external affairs minister K Natwar Singh in an exclusive interview.
Trump was good for world peace. He didn't start a war anywhere, which is not something that can be said for most of his predecessors, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Without doubt, India's success story will come up for close scrutiny when Modi's prime ministerial legacy is summed up in history.' 'A failure is simply unthinkable.' 'And the success will largely depend on national unity,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The corona deaths in India so far add up to 91,149 (September 24, 3.26 pm). It is seven-and-a-half times the number of Indian soldiers slain in all the wars (1947, 1961-1962, 1965, 1971 and 1999) in post-independent India's history, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'The Modi government's grandstanding has hardened the reflexes in Beijing, Islamabad and Kathmandu and complicated India's relations with these three countries, which were even otherwise highly problematic.' 'Whatever prospects existed for a fair and balanced resolution of the territorial disputes may also have receded,' observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The foreign secretary should delegate policy execution
'If India does not succeed in making the US recognise the combined threat of the China-Pakistan alliance, there is nothing left in the visit,' says Brajesh Mishra, the former National Security Adviser.
Here's how you should prepare yourself for various Civil Services exams scheduled in 2009.
'The attacks made clear to all the Gulf States that Pakistan was the nursery and sanctuary of extremist violence and that this violence threatened all the countries in the region.'
The 59-year-old diplomat was among the longest-serving spokespersons of the MEA. He had held the post between 2002 and 2008.
Former diplomat M K Bhadrakumar talks to Sheela Bhatt on what the Obama-Singh summit holds for India.
'It may serve the interests of the rule of law if the Supreme Court were to appoint the UNHCR as amicus curiae in the CAA case,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Currently, an IAS and IFS officer are accorded a pay advantage or financial edge.
The Rajya Sabha is all set to go digital to minimise the massive wastage of paper in the House, thanks to an initiative by Vice President and Chairman Hamid Ansari.As per the suggested changes, Parliamentarians will receive documents in hard copy only if they request for it and special incentives will be provided to MPs who opt for the digital format.Ansari, a retired Indian Foreign Service officer, wants Parliament to set an example.
The US has all along interfered in India-China issues. The objective is clear: Bring the Sino-Indian standoff to a flashpoint that would compel Modi government to take shelter under an American umbrella, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Washington senses that the anchor sheet of India's strategic autonomy lies in its longstanding partnership with Russia, which remains firm and immutable despite the changes in world politics in the post-Cold War era,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.<
It is premature to make the assumption that Biden's policy toward China will not be a break with Trump, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Pakistan is determined to garner the peace dividends.' 'On the diplomatic front, this will be, principally, in terms of a revival of Pakistan's relations with the US,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
What can be more seductive to lure a populist politician than a mass rally? Modi understands Trump well like few people can, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Women's representation in government jobs is less than 15%.
Senior Indian Foreign Service officials Sharat Sabharwal and Meera Shankar will be the next envoys to Pakistan and the United States respectively. Sabharwal, Special Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, will succeed High Commissioner Satyabrata Pal, who reaches superannuation on February 28. Shankar, India's Ambassador to Germany, will succeed Ronen Sen in Washington.
Both Mahinda Rajapaksa and Modi have learnt from their past mistakes. Modi has understood that Rajapaksa is a 'forever politician' that India has to live with, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
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