92 Country Report: Information Network

Periodicals

The Hindu. (n.d.). https://www.thehindu.com/

The Hindu: The Hindu is an Indian Newspaper that has been issued since 1878. It is an English daily newspaper run by the Hindu Group in Chennai, India. This newspaper includes world and Indian news, along with Entertainment and Opinion based articles.

This newspaper can be accessed by, https://www.thehindu.com/.

Through this source, I see what information is important to Indian people or what is happening in the country right now.

Kumar, A. (2023). China’s Two-Front Conundrum: A Perspective on the India-China Border Situation. Occasional Papers. Observer Research Foundation. https://www.orfonline.org/research/chinas-two-front-conundrum/

This source is an article from the Occasional Paper journal. The Occasional Paper is a free and accessible, global journal that focuses on global policies and issues. This article, written by Amit Kamar and published in March 2023, specifically describes the shared border issues with China and India. The article provides historical information about China and India’s border issues including the major conflict in 2020 when military troops fought. Kamar also describes China’s role and why the country might increase border tensions between them and India.

This article is found on the Observer Research Foundation website, https://www.orfonline.org/.

I choose this article because it gives a lot of background information on the issue between China and India. The article also adds possible reasons for the conflicts. Although, this paper seems to suggest that China starts conflicts at the border purposely as a way of protecting its fronts and dismissing India’s role in the conflicts.

Mansoor, S. (2023, April). India’s school textbooks are the latest battleground for Hindu nationalism. Time. https://time.com/6269349/india-textbook-changes-controversy-hindu-nationalism/

This source is a Time Magazine article, written by Sanya Mansoor and published in April of 2023. Time is an American news magazine although it also has sections about world news, like India. Mansoor describes the large upset about new Indian textbooks distributed to a primary school in India. Sections in, India’s National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) textbooks, were edited to take out information on Muslim rule in the country. According to Mansoor this takes away information about a long period from thousands of schools that use these books. Additionally, this pushes forward Hindu nationalism in the country.

This source is from the Time magazine website at, time.com.

The magazine article is another source that provides evidence of anti-muslim ideologies in India. This is something that may not be spoken much about in Indian sources. Although, since Time is an American magazine the article leaves out perspectives of Indians in these schools or those who made decisions to leave out the information they did.

Raj, S. (2023, April). New Indian textbooks purged of Muslim history and Hindu extremism. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/06/world/asia/india-textbooks-changes.html

This is a New York Times newspaper article about edited school textbooks in India. The article was written by Suhasini Raj, an Indian journalist who focuses on Indian issues and is located in New Delhi. In this post, Raj explains that recent textbooks have information taken out about a past prime minister’s rule in order to push a ‘Hindu nationalist vision’. Raj additionally added some examples of passages that were removed and other examples of India changing anything from Muslim to Hindu.

This source gives me a different perspective on Hindu and Muslim conflicts in India. This is also a recent issue that is being talked about now. The article also comes from a Indian-based journalist’s perspective.

Sharma, S. (n.d.). More than 400 internet lockdowns in last 4 years in India; average cost of each shutdown Rs 2 crore/hour. India Today. https://www.indiatoday.in/diu/story/more-than-400-internet-lockdowns-in-last-4-years-in-india-average-cost-of-each-shutdown-rs-2-crore-hour-1766025-2021-02-04

India Today: This source is an Indian-based magazine article. This weekly magazine has been issued since 1975 and reaches almost 8 million people. The magazine covers news stories, has live TV, podcasts, and shares world news. The article written by Samrat Sharma describes recent internet lockdowns in India. He adds statistics about the many lockdowns, for how long, and where they occurred.

This magazine can be accessed through the link, https://www.indiatoday.in/.

The Author is located in New Dehli, yet he also adds information about others’ opinions on the lockdowns, like from the US State Department. Sharma doesn’t add his own opinion to the article, yet the article still can be considered biased since he doesn’t explain why these lockdowns were enacted.

New Media

Basu, M. (2023, March). Is India’s transition to clean energy achievable or an empty promise? Global Voices. https://globalvoices.org/2023/03/06/is-indias-transition-to-clean-energy-achievable-or-an-empty-promise/

This is a Global Voices article posted in March of 2023 and by Moushumi Basu. Global Voices is an International organization that contains many different activists and writers that report worldwide issues. The article describes India’s new plan to create clean energy towards more environmental protection. according to the source, India declares to have zero emissions by 2070 and to eventually transition to total clean energy. Although Basu claims that this along with other claims will be difficult to achieve

Moushumi Basu is a journalist who focuses on many environmental issues, so she is educated in the topic. Although Basu does not have a scientific perspective, that would be better to determine the possibility of India’s claims. From this source, I can see what initiatives are in place in India for environmental protection and what citizens from India may think about the claims.

Hrishikesh, S. (2023, January). Census in India: Baffling lack of data is hurting Indians. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-64282374

BBC News is a broadcasting cooperation and website that shares current global news. In this article Sharanya Hrishikesh shares the history of the Indian census and how it is conducted. The recent census exercises have been pushed back because of Covid, and according to Hrishikesh, this can affect many Indians who rely on the census data to show their need for government aid. She also shares that there have been questions about the quality of the data that India collects.

This source gives me information about the Indian census and how data is collected in the country. It also questions the integrity of India’s information. The article does come from an Indian perspective.

McLaughlin, S. (2023, January). Censorship in India exposes the gap between ‘free speech’ and the law. FIRE. https://www.thefire.org/news/censorship-india-exposes-gap-between-free-speech-and-law

Censorship in India exposes the gap between ‘free speech’ and the law: This source is a website from “Fire”, an American nonprofit organization that advocates for rights to education and free speech. This is a 2023 post written by Sarah McLaughlin. In this post, McLaughlin defines the differences in free speech between India and the US when looking at the country’s different laws. Elon Musk, the new owner of Twitter, claims this means that Twitter and other online platforms should abide by a country’s freedom of speech laws where they are used.

This source can be accessed at https://www.thefire.org/news/censorship-india-exposes-gap-between-free-speech-and-law.

This source includes opinions about India’s censorship from a non-Indian perspective.

Miller, M. C., & Jordan, Z. (2022, March). Shaheen Mistri: India’s Education System Is in Crisis. Council on Foreign Relations. https://www.cfr.org/blog/shaheen-mistri-indias-education-system-crisis-0

India’s Education System Is in Crisis: This is a blog post written by Manjari Chatterjee Miller and Zoe Jordan and posted on the Council of Foreign Relations website. The post contains an interview with Shaheen Mistri, an Indian social activist and the CEO of Teach for India, a nonprofit. The source includes Mistri’s view on the Indian education system, the USA an India’s relations, along with the impact the Covid-19 pandemic had on education.

The interview is accessed at https://www.cfr.org/blog/shaheen-mistri-indias-education-system-crisis-0 or on the Council of Foreign Relations website.

This source allows me to see some misunderstandings about India’s education. Mistri mentions women’s roles in education in India and how they are much less valued. In fact, she includes that women have a much lower literacy rate in India than men. Mistri also includes information about her nonprofit, Teach for India, which shows what she is doing for women. She offers a fellowship program for most women and teaches them leadership skills.

Tandon, A. (2022, April). Lack of information is holding back the fight against climate change in India. Scroll.in. https://scroll.in/article/1021663/lack-of-information-is-holding-back-the-climate-fight-in-india

Scroll in is an online Indian news publication that posts in Hindi and in English. On this page, Aditi Tandon explains what could be an issue for the fight against climate change in India. According to Tandon, climate misinformation in India can put initiatives of action at risk. This has been a topic talked about in the UN. Also, partial information can harm actions of preventing climate change.

From this source I see what negative effects misinformation on media can have on some of India’s issues.

Social Media

Modi, N. (n.d.). Twitter. https://twitter.com/narendramodi?t=JN5eIre6BACOmU6-qcjfRQ&s=09

This source is a Twitter page of India’s current Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. Narendra Modi has been the prime minister of India since 2014 and has had a twitter profile since 2009. Here he makes posts to share to both India and the rest of the world.

This page can be accessed on Twitter or through this link, https://twitter.com/narendramodi?t=JN5eIre6BACOmU6-qcjfRQ&s=09.

I think this resource gives a perspective directly from the Indian government itself. This resource shows us what the Indian government will show compared to others that might oppose it or the prime minister himself. Through this, we can also see initiatives that are directly taken by the Indian government.

[President of India]. (n.d.). Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/PresidentofIndia?mibextid=ZbWKwL

The President of India, Droupadi Murmu, has been India’s president since 2022. On this Facebook page is a lot of events that the president attends along with statements from the Indian government.

The posts on this page don’t directly come from the President therefore aren’t coming from her. Although from this source i can see what the president supports and how the rest of India sees their government interacting with them.

The Times of India. (n.d.). Twitter. https://twitter.com/timesofindia?s=20

This source is a Twitter page for the Times of India, a large Indian newspaper. On this page, recent Indian news and articles are shared and commented on.

This source if from an Indian-based newspaper, therefore showing what citizens are likely to talk about. I also am seeing what other Indians can see so I am put into their perspective on the issues the Times of India shares.

Audio/Visual

Mohan, G. (Host). (n.d.). Greeta’s World [Audio podcast]. India Today. https://podcasts.indiatoday.in/politics-history/geetas-world

Greeta’s World: Greeta’s World Is an India Today podcast by Greeta Mohan in English. She is a journalist on diplomacy and international relations. Mohan gives her input on stories on international relations or world politics.

This podcast can be found on India Today’s webpage or through the link, https://podcasts.indiatoday.in/politics-history/geetas-world.

Through this podcast, Greeta Mohan shares contemporary issues that are big in the world or that may affect India.

CNA Insider. (2023, April). India, now the most populous country: Demographic advantage or disaster? [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3H4M3PcV8M

The CNA Insider documentary was posted on Youtube in April of 2023. CNA is an Asian News TV network. In their documentary, it is explained why India is now the most populated country in the world and why this can be an advantage but also a disadvantage for India. They mention issues about high unemployment, population’s effect on the environment, rising poverty rates, etc.

This video allows me to see how the rising population of India may be negatively affecting the country. Although, this documentary does not follow all of India, mostly the poor. It’s limiting the perspective of other parts of India and their middle class.

The Guardian. (2017, July). The Yamuna, India’s most polluted river [Video]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/eHCaIvPN2rY

This video is posted on youtube by The Guardian, a British daily newspaper. This video shares information about the Yamuna, India’s most polluted river. Along with this, they share India’s environmental issues and how they can affect their people.

This source allows me to see the actual environmental effects India’s pollution can have on something like its rivers. Although, The Guardian is not an Indian news source so they may leave out information on how this can affect people who live around the river every day.

Data Sources

[Number of villages, towns, households, population and area] [Table]. (2011). Census of India. https://censusindia.gov.in/census.website/data/census-tables

The Census of India is a database that contains information from each of India’s censuses. Anyone is allowed to access this source. On the database is this table that shows the number of villages, towns, populations, etc. in India in 2011.

This source shows what information the Indian government collects and shares. Although someone the tables that are shared can be hard to read for some.

India – Statistics and facts. (n.d.). Statistia. https://www.statista.com/topics/754/india/#topicOverview

Statista is a large data source that contains statistics and facts about many different countries and industries. Statista has a section on Indian statistics and facts. Here they contain information such as Indias’s GDP, population, and area. Along with this, they have charts that will show, life expectancy, fertility, urbanization, etc over time.

I can use this source to find a lot of numerical information about India.

Open Government Data (OGD) India Platform. (n.d.). https://data.gov.in/

Open Government Data: This source is from the Indian government and contains a lot of different data sets on many topics in India. It has multiple resources, visualizations, etc.

This data can be accessed through, https://data.gov.in/.

Through this resource, I can find a lot of data on many different topics in India. This is also a government source making it credible for the Indian government.