THE HISTORY of the Indonchina states (Vietnam, Kampuchea and Laos) is a long one of mutual rivalr... more THE HISTORY of the Indonchina states (Vietnam, Kampuchea and Laos) is a long one of mutual rivalry and foreign domination. With the end of direct US military involvement in 1973 and the military victories of the Vietnamese communists and the Khmer Rouge in 1975, it was ...
The history of ancient Indian political thought is of great significance and of practical utility... more The history of ancient Indian political thought is of great significance and of practical utility for a clear understanding of the political wisdom of our own ancestors. Kautilya, the great Indian social, political, military and economic master strategist of the 4 th Century BC, remains an enigma in the world of international relations, political science, foreign policy and the other social sciences for his ideas of extreme realism and uncompromising shrewdness to preserve the welfare of the state and expansion of the kingdom. However, Kautilya's genius transcends the realm of politics and also acquires extreme significance in other fields such as economics, development studies and of course military sciences. The chief advisor and mentor to the great emperor Chandragupta Maurya, Kautilya is one of the most intriguing figures in Indian history itself, his exact origins and lifetime among other facts remaining a matter under debate till this day among historians and archaeologists. Without the help of Kautilya, Chandragupta would perhaps never have become the emperor of Magadha. His magnum opus, the Arthasastra, is a comprehensive work which may be called one of the finest, if not the finest works of ancient Indian Political and economic thought. Kautilya's contribution through Arthasastra had also no doubt added to the totality and continuity of the subject of Political Science and International Relations and remained a compendium of all the Arthasastras, which were composed by ancient writers for the acquisition and maintenance of the 'earth'. Kautilya, also known as Chanakya, was an original thinker. His ideas were novel and he took political thought in ancient India to a new level. He was perhaps the first Indian thinker to take such a pragmatic and secular approach to realpolitik. According to Prof. Jayantanuja Bandopadhyaya, Kautilya was even more sophisticated than the modern realists like Hans J Morgenthau who are confused between means and end as compared to the Indian genius who clearly stated that happiness is the end and power is the means to it. 1 In fact, the discovery of the Arthasastra restored Indian prestige and comprehensively shut the mouths of the critics who had accused Indian Thought, political or otherwise to be devoid of rationalism and dichotomous, being solely based on religion,
The genesis of BRIC (Brazil-Russia-India-China, predecessor of present-day BRICS) as a multilater... more The genesis of BRIC (Brazil-Russia-India-China, predecessor of present-day BRICS) as a multilateral grouping of the four developing or emerging economies can be traced back to September 2006, with the 61st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, in a bid to explore measures of economic and political cooperation among the member-States. Officially, the organization came into existence in 2009, and with the inclusion of South Africa as the fifth member in April 2011, BRIC was rechristened BRICS. Till date, the BRICS member-states have held seven Summits and the latest in Ufa, Russia (July 2015) has been a watershed with the entry into force of the New Development Bank/BRICS Bank and the Contingent Reserves Arrangement. The BRICS Bank is heralded as an alternative to the World Bank-International Monetary Fund-led international economic architecture. However, it remains to be testified whether the BRICS Bank can evolve as a pulsating alternative to the WB-IMF-led financial system, though there is no way denying its establishment as a stepping stone for providing a predominantly South-South economic cooperative mechanism.
THE HISTORY of the Indonchina states (Vietnam, Kampuchea and Laos) is a long one of mutual rivalr... more THE HISTORY of the Indonchina states (Vietnam, Kampuchea and Laos) is a long one of mutual rivalry and foreign domination. With the end of direct US military involvement in 1973 and the military victories of the Vietnamese communists and the Khmer Rouge in 1975, it was ...
The history of ancient Indian political thought is of great significance and of practical utility... more The history of ancient Indian political thought is of great significance and of practical utility for a clear understanding of the political wisdom of our own ancestors. Kautilya, the great Indian social, political, military and economic master strategist of the 4 th Century BC, remains an enigma in the world of international relations, political science, foreign policy and the other social sciences for his ideas of extreme realism and uncompromising shrewdness to preserve the welfare of the state and expansion of the kingdom. However, Kautilya's genius transcends the realm of politics and also acquires extreme significance in other fields such as economics, development studies and of course military sciences. The chief advisor and mentor to the great emperor Chandragupta Maurya, Kautilya is one of the most intriguing figures in Indian history itself, his exact origins and lifetime among other facts remaining a matter under debate till this day among historians and archaeologists. Without the help of Kautilya, Chandragupta would perhaps never have become the emperor of Magadha. His magnum opus, the Arthasastra, is a comprehensive work which may be called one of the finest, if not the finest works of ancient Indian Political and economic thought. Kautilya's contribution through Arthasastra had also no doubt added to the totality and continuity of the subject of Political Science and International Relations and remained a compendium of all the Arthasastras, which were composed by ancient writers for the acquisition and maintenance of the 'earth'. Kautilya, also known as Chanakya, was an original thinker. His ideas were novel and he took political thought in ancient India to a new level. He was perhaps the first Indian thinker to take such a pragmatic and secular approach to realpolitik. According to Prof. Jayantanuja Bandopadhyaya, Kautilya was even more sophisticated than the modern realists like Hans J Morgenthau who are confused between means and end as compared to the Indian genius who clearly stated that happiness is the end and power is the means to it. 1 In fact, the discovery of the Arthasastra restored Indian prestige and comprehensively shut the mouths of the critics who had accused Indian Thought, political or otherwise to be devoid of rationalism and dichotomous, being solely based on religion,
The genesis of BRIC (Brazil-Russia-India-China, predecessor of present-day BRICS) as a multilater... more The genesis of BRIC (Brazil-Russia-India-China, predecessor of present-day BRICS) as a multilateral grouping of the four developing or emerging economies can be traced back to September 2006, with the 61st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, in a bid to explore measures of economic and political cooperation among the member-States. Officially, the organization came into existence in 2009, and with the inclusion of South Africa as the fifth member in April 2011, BRIC was rechristened BRICS. Till date, the BRICS member-states have held seven Summits and the latest in Ufa, Russia (July 2015) has been a watershed with the entry into force of the New Development Bank/BRICS Bank and the Contingent Reserves Arrangement. The BRICS Bank is heralded as an alternative to the World Bank-International Monetary Fund-led international economic architecture. However, it remains to be testified whether the BRICS Bank can evolve as a pulsating alternative to the WB-IMF-led financial system, though there is no way denying its establishment as a stepping stone for providing a predominantly South-South economic cooperative mechanism.
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Papers by Tridib Chakraborti
grouping of the four developing or emerging economies can be traced back to September 2006, with the
61st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, in a bid to explore measures of
economic and political cooperation among the member-States. Officially, the organization came into
existence in 2009, and with the inclusion of South Africa as the fifth member in April 2011, BRIC was rechristened
BRICS. Till date, the BRICS member-states have held seven Summits and the latest in Ufa,
Russia (July 2015) has been a watershed with the entry into force of the New Development Bank/BRICS
Bank and the Contingent Reserves Arrangement. The BRICS Bank is heralded as an alternative to the
World Bank-International Monetary Fund-led international economic architecture. However, it remains to
be testified whether the BRICS Bank can evolve as a pulsating alternative to the WB-IMF-led financial
system, though there is no way denying its establishment as a stepping stone for providing a
predominantly South-South economic cooperative mechanism.
grouping of the four developing or emerging economies can be traced back to September 2006, with the
61st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, in a bid to explore measures of
economic and political cooperation among the member-States. Officially, the organization came into
existence in 2009, and with the inclusion of South Africa as the fifth member in April 2011, BRIC was rechristened
BRICS. Till date, the BRICS member-states have held seven Summits and the latest in Ufa,
Russia (July 2015) has been a watershed with the entry into force of the New Development Bank/BRICS
Bank and the Contingent Reserves Arrangement. The BRICS Bank is heralded as an alternative to the
World Bank-International Monetary Fund-led international economic architecture. However, it remains to
be testified whether the BRICS Bank can evolve as a pulsating alternative to the WB-IMF-led financial
system, though there is no way denying its establishment as a stepping stone for providing a
predominantly South-South economic cooperative mechanism.