THE RISE OF FOREIGN-OWNED GCCS AND THE QUIET DECLINE OF INDIA'S IT GIANTS The story told about Indian IT is a story of disruption. Artificial intelligence, the argument goes, is automating the work that built a $224 billion export industry, the code-writing, the testing, the legacy migration, and the national champions that built it are scrambling to adapt. That story is true. It is also incomplete in a way that matters. Illustration by Geopolitics Next The more significant s

Operation Sindoor, which India launched last year in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, marked the defining moment in India’s counterterrorism response. In that 88-hour-long conflict, India redrew the lines of deterrence, making the harbours of terrorism know that no sanctuary of terror across the border is safe and India has the capability and resolve to destroy and hit everything. Illustration by The Geostrata Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery famously remarked, “

“The very ‘rules of war’ have changed. The role of nonmilitary means of achieving political and strategic goals has grown, and, in many cases, they have exceeded the power of force of weapons in their effectiveness.” ~ General Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Illustration by The Geostrata The concept of warfare has been evolving, from ancient times to the current state of advanced technology-driven warfare. In the past

“As the global dynamics evolve, the neighbourhood around New Delhi has gained momentum to strengthen and modernise its democratic systems.” After the 2022 regime change in Sri Lanka, two other nation-states, Bangladesh and Nepal, have now undergone the same by establishing new governments. This political shift in India's neighbourhood has brought the opportunity for New Delhi to reset its ties and emerge as a more trusted partner in the subcontinent. Illustration by The Geost

Wages are a perennial issue in the Indian market, and this was exemplified during the recent labour unrest in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, during the month of April, which brought attention back to India's changing labour laws and the difficult realities of putting them into effect. What started as a protest over pay problems slowly turned into tense fights in some parts of the industrial area. There were reports of injuries and damage to public property, including cars being set on

The European Union-India Free Trade Agreement (EU-India FTA), signed on January 27, 2026 after more than two decades of negotiations represents an inflection point in both trade and geopolitical priorities of the two partners. Cover by The Geostrata Using data from the WITS and COMEXT databases, this study employs a partial equilibrium model to estimate the expected change in EU exports of motor vehicles (HS-4 8703) and components (HS-4 8708) to India, outlining the expected

Recent developments in India-China relations suggest a careful but deliberate attempt at stabilisation, after years of deep strain following the 2020 border crisis. The appointment of Vikram Doraiswami as India’s new Ambassador to China, positive signalling from Beijing, and evolving economic policy choices in New Delhi together reflect a pragmatic recalibration. Illustration by The Geostrata This is shaped by both geopolitical and economic compulsions. This emerging approach

Historically, various forms of governments have emerged, ranging from coercive– authoritarian, totalitarian, dictatorial, despotic, fascist, autocratic, to participative models like democracy. Somewhere between the spectrum lie forms of governance like monarchy, oligarchy, kleptocracy, and the very recent ones like broligarchy. These terms may sound similar and at times used interchangeably, but their essence does differ- Same, Same but Different! Illustration by The Geostrat

The Frontier Nagaland Territorial Authority (FNTA) is an important step in India's demand redressal and grievance settlement system, in which demands are fulfilled without any harm caused to the national integrity. The FNTA is a carefully curated response to decades-long calls from Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation (ENPO) for more political recognition and developmental justice in eastern Nagaland. Illustration by The Geostrata It came about after talks between the Un

Embedded in our history, scriptures, and sciences, the transgender community has made an indelible mark on what we proudly deem to be our culture. Composed of Hijras , eunuchs, Kothis, Aravanis, Jogappas, Shiv-Shakthis etc, the community finds its roots tracing back to the Vedas, Puranas, and other significant oral and written traditions like the Ramayana. Illustration by The Geostrata The community is often referred to as ‘napunsaka,’ which means someone with the inability

When people think about the Strait of Hormuz, they usually think about oil. They picture giant tankers slowly moving through a narrow strip of water between Iran and Oman, carrying fuel to power cars, factories, and cities around the world. But for India, this thin stretch of water that is only 33 kilometres wide at its narrowest point is far more than an oil route. It is a critical lifeline that touches almost every part of the Indian economy. Illustration by The Geostrata

Almost every day, mainstream media reports a tragic incident: ‘a young man died after his car plunged into a water-filled construction pit’, ‘a car disappeared into a flooded underpass, students died in an unsafe basement’, ‘a bridge collapsed days after repair, a construction site caved in, burying many workers alive’, which captures the attention of the nation. The next few days are followed by mourning, outrage, promises of inquiry, and accountability of the responsible au

India's Maoist insurgency once controlled 200 districts across ten states, with varying degrees of fear or allegiance. It now has control of only seven. Over 12,000 people died in Naxal-related violence between 2000 and 2019. In 2024, that number was 290, which is still significant, but a fraction of what it was before. Reports indicate that no new cadres have been recruited since 2019. Illustration by The Geostrata To truly grasp the reality of a Naxal cleanup, one must g

India stands at a structural inflexion point in global history. The international system is no longer defined by the rigid binaries of the Cold War nor by the temporary unipolar moment that followed. Power today is fragmented, fluid, and multidimensional. In this evolving order, India is no longer a peripheral balancer. Illustration by The Geostrata It is one of the defining poles shaping the architecture of the twenty-first century. Yet there remains a strategic paradox. Whi

In World War II, the cracking of the Enigma code helped defeat divisions of the Nazis without firing a bullet, and reconnaissance intelligence helped prevent a nuclear catastrophe during the Cuban Missile Crisis. History has taught us one important lesson: the strongest in a nation’s arsenal isn’t a missile or a jet; it’s the intelligence that prevents them from ever being used. Illustration by The Geostrata Intelligence is such a tool that shapes the options on the table, fa

Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) , a trade agreement linking ten ASEAN countries with five of their key Free Trade Agreement partners, is one of the largest trade blocs in the world. Illustration by The Geostrata The RCEP treaty is significant due to its representation of nearly a third of the world’s gross domestic product , encompassing a population of over two billion people and an estimated $5.2 trillion in total exports. Despite its scale and s

India, also known as Bharatvarsh, was the land that once stretched all the way from Kandahar and Ghazni in the northwest (present-day Afghanistan) to present-day Southeast Asia. A land that had flourished as a hub of knowledge, science, and culture turned into a region marred by nearly 800 years of continuous conflict. Illustration by The Geostrata Geography placed India at the crossroads of continents, commerce, faiths, and empires, from the bone-chilling mountain passes of

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s sweeping electoral victory has inevitably triggered a familiar question in New Delhi’s strategic circles: what does a BNP-led Dhaka mean for India? Illustration by The Geostrata The concern is not hollow , as memories of strained ties during the earlier BNP rule remain fresh in the minds of experts and people alike. But geopolitics rarely allows countries the luxury of nostalgia. Today’s world, where alliances are changing at an unpreceden

India is set to host two key summits in 2026, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) and the BRICS, assuming crucial geopolitical significance across the Indo-Pacific, Africa, and Latin America. New Delhi’s active role in the BRICS underscores India's outreach to the Global South, working towards a multipolar world order. The QUAD, on the other hand, has a diversified agenda ranging from maritime security to developmental partnerships in the Indo-Pacific. Illustration by

Greetings, everyone, We are happy to launch the 2025 edition of the Geomaga. In a way the year 2025 has been a year of national security. From Operation Sindoor against Pakistan to strikes on Myanmar and from technological advancements in the defence sector to the renewed focus on self-reliance, these are the broad spectrum of issues that have dominated the popular intellectual discourse throughout the year. Cover by The Geostrata In this edition of the Geomaga, we have inclu