-The Hindu Unnerved by the Indian stand, IT monopolies are propagating the myth that a multilateral governance structure will kill the decentralised, multi-stakeholder nature of the Internet and lead to ‘government control' Last year, in a statement to the U.N. General Assembly, India sought the creation of a U.N. Committee on Internet-Related Policies (CIRP) in order to democratise global Internet governance, which at present is either U.S.-controlled, or subject to the policies...

A scholarly study of corruption in the larger context of societal growth and development Corruption is no longer a word and has become a noise. Debates on corruption have reached high decibel levels and the world is no closer to solutions. Given the complexity, there are as many views as there are participants. Some speak from high moral pedestals like those from the rich, donor countries. It is no surprise that...

Recently, the Indian Council of Social Science Research, the highest body that funds and guides the social sciences in India, has initiated an in-house debate about the current state and the future prospects of such research. What is the quality of work that has come out of our universities and research institutes over the past 10-20 years? Which new areas of inquiry deserve more time, money and attention in the...

Justice Markandey Katju's prescription for a regulated media regime is a misplaced step that can actually de-democratise the fourth estate. IT is open season on the political class and the news media. But then, again, it's more like a chase of one's own tail. A self-righteous, delusional, Anna-Baba NGO-ised fringe sets out to stigmatise politics and Members of Parliament; the news media salivate at the prospect and rush to provide...

Move to form body with 50 governments to oversee Internet governance The raging controversy over excessive state regulation of the Internet based on the IT Rules 2011 is now likely to be dwarfed by discussions in Geneva later this week on India's proposal to the United Nations General Assembly for government control of the Internet. Led by the Commission on Science and Technology for Development, the Geneva meet is a multi-stakeholder discussion...