South Asia in 2008 : A Review

Contents: Foreword. I. Politics and governance: A. Centre-state relations: 1. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Arunachal Pradesh: buttressing the claims/S.D. Muni. 2. Karnataka State Assembly Elections: implications for the UPA Government/E. Sridharan. B. Political parties and processes: 3. Benazir Bhutto (1953-2007) assassinated : Pakistan in turmoil/Ishtiaq Ahmed. 4. One year in office: an assessment of Bangladesh\'s Caretaker Government/M. Shahidul Islam. 5. The Pakistan elections: a political analysis/Ishtiaq Ahmed. 6. Yousaf Raza Gilani: Pakistan\'s new Prime Minister/Ishtiaq Ahmed. 7. Post-election Pakistan: is there hope or despair for the people?/Iftikhar A. Lodhi. 8. Bhutan: marching towards democracy/S.D. Muni. 9. The Pakistan Federal Cabinet: more of the same or something new?/Ishtiaq Ahmed. 10. Nepal Constituent Assembly Elections: the dawn of a new era/Nishchal Nath Pandey. 11. The unravelling of coalition politics in Pakistan/Rajshree Jetly. 12. The walkout in India: No longer \'Left\' in the lurch/Bibek Debroy. 13. Musharraf\'s resignation: a cause for celebration and concern for Pakistan/Rajshree Jetly. 14. Elections in Pakistan: new president, same old story/Rajshree Jetly. 15. Return to the two Begums: a \'Hobson\'s Choice\' for Bangladesh?/M. Shahidul Islam. 16. Maldives: towards open polity/S.D. Muni. 17. State Assembly Election results in India: dispelling the many commonly-held notions of Indian elections/Tridivesh Singh Maini. 18. An overview of the November-December 2008 provincial elections in India/Paranjoy Guha Thakurta. C. Terrorism and security: 19. Recent bomb blasts in South Asia: Are the terrorists on a killing spree again?/Ishtiaq Ahmed. 20. Attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul: time to sober up/Iftikhar A. Lodhi. 21. The Pakistan inter-services intelligence: a profile/Ishtiaq Ahmed. 22. India\'s Tamil politics and the Sri Lankan ethnic conflict/S.D. Muni. 23. The Mumbai Mayhem: the global war on terror comes to India/S.D. Muni. II. Economic development: A. Economic reforms: 24. Nepal: political uncertainties and economic challenges/Malminderjit Singh. 25. The first budget by the new coalition government in Pakistan: economic situation and policy directions/Iftikhar A. Lodhi. 26. Pakistan\'s economic crisis and the IMF Bailout package/Iftikhar A. Lodhi. 27. Will the UPA Victory in the Trust Vote Result in faster economic reforms?/Amitendu Palit. 28. Some approaches to pricing controls for patented drugs in India/S. Narayan. B. Fiscal policies and financial markets: 29. The sub-prime crisis: likely consequences for the Indian economy/S. Narayan. 30. The appreciating rupee and India\'s exports: should policy makers worry?/K.V. Ramaswamy. 31. Analysing India\'s credit policy: keeping an eye on inflation and the elections/S. Narayan. 32. India\'s Economic Survey 2007-2008: impressive growth and a promising future/K.V. Ramaswamy. 33. The Indian budget 2008-2009: an assessment/S. Narayan. 34. South Asia\'s inflation challenges/M. Shahidul Islam. 35. India\'s annual policy statement for FY 2008-2009: Achieving a \'Neither Tight, Nor Liberal\' Monetary Policy/Amitendu Palit. 36. Of Agflation and agriculture: time to fix the structural problems/M. Shahidul Islam. 37. Modifications of the External Commercial Borrowings Policy: Implications for overseas investments/S. Narayan. 38. The Third Oil Shock: the path forward for Bangladesh/M. Shahidul Islam. 39. India\'s employment exchanges: should they be revamped or scrapped altogether?/Bibek Debroy. 40. For illiberal finance: building dams, constructing conduits/Romar Correa. 41. National Treasury Management Agency Proposals: implications for India\'s financial policies/S. Narayan. 42. The fall of the Indian rupee and \'The Unholy Trinity\'/M. Shahidul Islam. C. Infrastructure development: 43. Urban transport in India: the \'Nano\' effect/Shreekant Gupta. 44. Urban transport in India: Beyond \'Nano\'/Shreekant Gupta. 45. India: towards a knowledge superpower?: a view from outside/Gopinath Pillai. 46. Higher education in India: ducking the answers/Bibek Debroy. 47. Indian management education: the regulatory structure is still confused/Bibek Debroy. 48. A brief conceptual note: development of the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor/S. Narayan. 49. Locking in private investment in Indian agriculture/Romar Correa. D. State studies: 50. Development trends in selected Indian states: issues of governance and management/S. Narayan. E. International trade and business: 51. Economic slow-down in the United States: importance of domestic market leverage in South Asia/K.V. Ramaswamy. 52. India\'s trade deficit: increasing fast but still manageable/Amitendu Palit. 53. Pakistan\'s New Trade Policy Initiatives: implications for India and Pakistan/Iftikhar A. Lodhi. 54. It is getting more difficult to do business in South Asia/Amitendu Palit. 55. Crisis in the United States markets and consequences for the Indian markets/S. Narayan. 56. Global economic slow-down: can Bangladesh remain resilent?/M. Shahidul Islam. III. Regional and International Relations: A. South Asian regionalism: 57. India-Pakistan composite dialogue: towards a \'Grand Reconciliation\'?/S.D. Muni. 58. Bangladesh--China--North-East India: opportunities and anxieties/M. Shahidul Islam. B. South Asia--China relations: 59. India and China: towards slow and steady cooperation/S.D. Muni. 60. Sino-Indian trade relations: understanding the bilateral and regional implications/Deep K. Datta-Ray. 61. The Third Tibetan Uprising: India\'s response/S.D. Muni. C. South Asia--South-East Asia Relations: 62. Developing India--Malaysia relations: managing issues of the diaspora/Malminderjit Singh. 63. Inter-regionalism and its possibilities/Ong Keng Yong. D. South Asia--United States Relations: 64. India\'s nuclear dilemma: to drop the deal or to drop the left/S.D. Muni. 65. India--United States relations under the Obama administration/Sanjaya Baru. E. South Asia--Russia relations: 66. Russian Premier Victor Zubkov in India: reinvigorating relations/S.D. Muni. Contributors.

"South Asia in 2008: A Review is a collection of papers written by researchers at the Institute of South Asian Studies in 2008.

Focusing on significant developments in South Asia, this publication highlights the key issues that dominated the news in the subcontinent last year.

It examines positive developments in the South Asian region such as the return of democracy in several of the countries, economic growth and cooperation. These papers also cover some of the fundamental challenges facing the region, including terrorism, the economic slowdown and obstacles to socio-economic development among countries in the region. Attention is also given to South Asia\'s relationship with the principal partners such as China, Russia, the United States and Southeast Asia.

This publication is intended as a comprehensive and current reference to the complex issues that shape the political, economic and social landscape of South Asia." (jacket)