Prakash Kumar

The power of silence and solitude is not easily felt. For roughly one decade, I have been trying to experience this elusive state. I explored several manners of techniques and tools, yet it continues to elude me. I spent considerable time in the Himalayas, embarked on several long solo journeys both within country and abroad, read countless books and articles, and practiced meditation and yoga. Throughout this journey, I try to develop a non-reactive mindset while continuing to work. What amazes me in this process is that the murmuring self never allows you to rest in silence, even in the deep mountains where you are completely alone. What I come to understand is that the inner self is the primary obstacle to meaningful silence and solitude. I try to work on this realization, observing all sorts of communication with my inner self while trying not to be reactive or repetitive. It remains a work in progress, but the initial results are bit positive. In this process, I learned to mai...

India had been contemplating the suspension of the Indus Water Treaty for several years. However, the recent ghastly attack in Pahalgam and the surge of public sentiment demanding action against Pakistan compelled India to unilaterally suspend the 65-year-old treaty, which had been mediated by the World Bank. Ideally, this step could have been taken back in the 1990s, but India, on humanitarian grounds, refrained from scrapping the agreement which is the lifeline of Pakistan agriculture. In recent years, however, China’s construction of massive reservoirs and hydropower projects on the Brahmaputra River—which may eventually reduce its downstream flow into India—has been a major factor prompting India to consider similar measures with Pakistan. Notably, the Indus River originates in Tibet (China), with India being the first downstream nation. The Indus water system comprises six rivers: the eastern rivers—Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi—were allocated entirely to India, while the western riv...