Sparsh

क्या है Indian Air Force के साथ गड़बड़? 1. GE Engine Deal   भारतीय वायुसेना (IAF) आज बहुत बड़ी मुश्किलों का सामना कर रही है। GE F414 इंजन के लिए तेजस Mk2 और AMCA जेट्स की डिलीवरी में तीन साल की देरी हो चुकी है। पहले 2023 में MoU हुआ था, अब मार्च 2026 तक का इंतजार है। यह सिर्फ शुरुआत है। GE F404 इंजन जो Tejas Mk1A के लिए चाहिए थे, उन्हें भी अभी तक सही मायने में नहीं मिले। 2023 से ही deliveries miss हो रही हैं। 2025 के बीच तक सिर्फ 3 इंजन मिले हैं। HAL को हर साल 12-16 जेट्स बनाने हैं, लेकिन इंजन न मिलने से वो भी नहीं हो पा रहा। GE ने मार्च 2026 में 12 इंजन देने का वादा किया है, पर उस पर भी निर्भर नहीं हो सकते। GE Engine Deal में क्या समस्या है? तीन मुख्य समस्याएं हैं GE के साथ negotiations में: Technology Transfer का झगड़ा : भारत चाहता है कि कम से कम 80-100% technology transfer हो ताकि भारत आगे जा सके। GE हमेशा कुछ बातें रोक कर रखता है - source code, manufacturing के secrets, सब कुछ पूरा नहीं देता। यह भारत की आत्मनिर्भरता में रोड़ा अटकाता है। कीमत का सवाल :  कितना दाम...

Sparsh: 50 Pointers - Medieval-Like Fantasy Worlds - First Part While the material foundations examined in Part 1 provide the scaffolding for mediaeval fantasy worlds, this second exploration with remaining 25 pointers delves into the intangible systems that actually hold societies together and tear them apart: 26. Weak Espionage and Intelligence : Inadequate spy networks left kingdoms exposed to manipulation, surprise attacks from rivals, and internal conspiracies, undermining state security. The Delhi Sultanate frequently fell victim to surprise invasions ( particularly Timur's 1398 raid ) due to inadequate intelligence gathering leading to entire populations killed or enslaved. 27.  Prostitution and Urban Underworld:  Prostitution is a common and tolerated feature of city life. The lives of sex workers intersected with the criminal underworld providing vital networks of information and serving as intermediaries for espionage, blackmail, and political intrigue.  28. ...

What is the key reason behind the recent surge in popularity of science fiction and fantasy genres? The authors can  reveal truths about society and politics when direct expression is  suppressed  by an unfavorable political and religious environment. S cience fiction genre is a mirror image of fantasy (sword & sorcery) established from current time reference.  The book is science fiction is when you're depressed about the future, fantasy is when you're depressed about the past, and literature is when you're depressed about the present.   Similarly, fantasy is when the technology the characters use is magic and sci-fi is when the magic the characters use is technology. Common fantasy themes that readers easily recognize include resistance to tyranny, prophecies guiding destinies, hero-centered stories, journey to distant land and rags-to-riches journeys. I will not help the readers on these familiar themes of struggle, hope, and love that form the backb...

India's War: The Making of Modern South Asia, 1939-1945  by Srinath Raghavan India's War | Goodreads ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰ Worth Reading A French writer once asked: What made France a nation? He listed three factors – the French educational system, the French Army, and the French middle classes.  In the Indian context, the Second World War served as a crucible for nation-making through different mechanisms.  This is well documented in the book,  India's War: The Making of Modern South Asia, 1939-1945.  The book is an essential read for anyone interested in India’s involvement in World War II. Covering key wars and military operations, the book sheds light on the evolution of India's armed force & it’s the political, economic, monetary, and social impact on the nation. The war mobilized over 2.5 million Indian soldiers b etween 1939 to 1945 , and India underwent an extraordinary and irreversible change due to World War II.  Hundreds of thousands of Indians suddenl...

Among the Believers: An Islamic Journey  by  V. S. Naipaul Among the Believers: An Islamic Journey | Goodreads ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰ Worth Reading History bears out the proposition that political revolutions have always been preceded by social and religious revolutions.    In Bangladesh, a significant number of people have converted to Islam over centuries, particularly during the medieval period when the region was influenced by conquest of Muslim rulers and proselytization by Sufi saints. Today, there has been t he rapid rise of radicalism in Bangladesh with the ouster of ex- Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina  in the student protest.  The protest has now been hijacked by Islamic extremists. Over the years, there was  a surge in madrasas, and  this has led to growing religious fanaticism, with zealots aggressively pushing an Islamist agenda.  With Islamist influence in power, Bangladesh is modifying national identity by erasing symbols of its secular past, ...

My Dagestan (Мой Дагестан) (Avar: Дир Дагъистан) by R asul Gamzatov . The book was translated in English in 1970 by Julius Katzer and Dorian Rottenberg. ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰ Worth Reading Let me speak of Dagestan —a rugged land along North Caucasus of Eastern Europe and the western shore of the Caspian Sea. The word Dagestan is of Turkish and Persian origin, directly translating to "land of the mountains".  The land has for centuries been a mosaic of peoples and languages: Avars, Dargins, Lezgins, Laks, Kumyks, and many others. The territory was annexed into the Russian Empire after protracted wars in the early nineteenth century.   By 1921, with the Red Army’s advance, the Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic came into being.  Soviet state enforced sweeping modernization in  Dagestan, bringing it into line with Marxist-Leninist ideology while managing the religious sentiments.  Arabic was replaced first by Latin, later by Cyrillic; schools sprang up, teach...

Bhutan: The Kingdom at the Centre of the World  by  Omair Ahmad Bhutan: The Kingdom at the Centre of the World | Goodreads ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰ Worth Reading Despite the neighboring state of India, relatively limited number of books for common readers are available on Bhutan , a landlocked country in the Eastern Himalayas. This can be attributed to  unique geography and isolation  a policy of self-imposed isolation, which was successful in preserving its territorial integrity  as a Himalayan kingdom. Bhutan is much less known in the U.S. and western hemisphere that too for its Buddhism and as a mystical, serene travel destination.  Bhutan is slowly gaining popularity as a travel destination and t he readers will know a surprising  fact  on reading the book co nnecting Bhutan with the ' Golden Gate Bridge ' of San Francisco. Omair Ahmad has written an  insightful and beautiful book into the history of Bhutan, Druk Yul: Land of the Thunder Dragon. The book is...

Twilight of the Elites: America After Meritocracy by Christopher L. Hayes ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰ Worth Reading “To see what is in front of one’s nose is a constant struggle,” George Orwell famously observed. So, what is it that American liberals and conservatives have missed? Twilight of the Elites: America After Meritocracy is a 2012 nonfiction book written by Christopher Hayes. The book Twilight of the Elites: America After Meritocracy by Christopher L. Hayes explores the crisis of authority in America, attributing it to the failures of the modern meritocracy. Hayes argues that since the 1960s, as more diverse groups rose to elite status through meritocratic means, a new elite emerged that is marked by increased social distance, corruption, and institutional failure.  This elite, embraced inequality, leading to widespread distrust in key institutions such as government, corporate America, the media, and even sports organizations.  Today, the children of these  elites enjoy outsized ret...

Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan  by William Dalrymple ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Highly Recommended Despite the significant failures experienced in Vietnam, the idea of American exceptionalism remained deeply ingrained in the U.S. national psyche till 2000. Then, 9/11 happened. A focused military-intelligence operation targeting the perpetrators of 9/11 could have addressed domestic demands for justice. Alas, Bush administration launched a large-scale ground invasion of Afghanistan.  USA withdrew ultimately from war scarred land of Afghanistan, marking the end of a twenty-year military presence. They couldn't capture and run a dummy Afghan government. Sounds familiar !  The aphorism “History does not repeat itself, but it often rhymes” is evident in these events when the United States withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021, echoing past foreign interventions in the country. The rapid collapse of Afghanistan’s government and swift Taliban resurgence after the U.S. exit underscore the c...

" The Seen and the Unseen " is India's premier long-form podcast hosted by Amit Varma. The podcast, which has been running since 2017, features long-form conversations with intellectuals, writers, economists, historians, and thought leaders from India and around the world. I am only sharing the books recommended related to  Indian History:  Post-Independence to Contemporary India (1970s–Present) India after Gandhi — Ramachandra Guha 1971: A Global History of the Creation of Bangladesh — Srinath Raghavan Emergency Chronicles: Indira Gandhi and Democracy’s Turning Point — Gyan Prakash India Moving: A History of Migration — Chinmay Tumbe Jugalbandi: The BJP Before Modi — Vinay Sitapati The Paradoxical Prime Minister — Shashi Tharoor The Generation of Rage in Kashmir — David Devadas Atomic State: Big Science in Twentieth-Century India — Jahnavi Phalkey Independence and Nation-Building Era (1940s–1970s) VP Menon: The Unsung Architect of Modern India — Narayani Basu The M...