Lt Gen Ashok Bhim Shivane

The author, a PVSM, AVSM, VSM has had an illustrious career spanning nearly four decades. A distinguished Armoured Corps officer, he has served in various prestigious staff and command appointments including Commander Independent Armoured Brigade, ADG PP, GOC Armoured Division and GOC Strike 1. The officer retired as DG Mechanised Forces in December 2017 during which he was the architect to initiate process for reintroduction of Light Tank and Chairman on the study on C5ISR for Indian Army. Subsequently he was Consultant MoD/OFB from 2018 to 2020. He is also a reputed defence analyst, a motivational speaker and prolific writer on matters of military, defence technology and national security. The views expressed are personal and do not necessarily carry the views of Raksha Anirveda

Terror Niti vs Chanakya Niti: Afghanistan Exposes Pakistan’s Strategic Bankruptcy

The Depth That Collapsed: Afghanistan has often been called the graveyard of empires, but it may well become the mirror that shatters Pakistan’s illusions. For decades, Pakistan sold the idea of ‘strategic depth’, using...

Digital Steel: Transforming the Armoured Corps for Integrated Multidomain Wars

The Imperative for Doctrinal Transformation: India’s Armoured Corps faces transformation challenges unique to the digital age of multidomain battlespace. The predominance of C5ISR and digital kill webs, along with unmanned aerial systems cum missiles,...

Snapback Sanctions on Iran: Punishment Without Strategy

The reimposition of United Nations sanctions on Iran this September has been described in Western capitals as a triumph of resolve. In practice, it reveals the fundamental ineffectiveness of diplomacy and the failure of...

Has US Antagonism Taught India the Cost of Dependencies?

Operation Sindoor underlined India’s ability to impose its will on the battlefield. Yet the weeks that followed have shown that the bigger war is not about missiles or drones. It is about autonomy. The...

Trump’s Department of War: A Return to Old Names or A New Strategic Intent?

United States President Donald Trump, on September 5, 2025 signed an executive order to rename the “Department of Defence” as the “Department of War,” reverting to a title it had held until after World...

Nepal in the Eye of the Storm: Riots, Rivalries and the Future of the Kingdom

Once again, Nepal is in the eye of the storm. Kingdom, republic, coalition after coalition changed labels, but the faultlines never quite closed. However, the present storm has its epicentre beyond the domestic crisis...

Trump’s Wake-up Call: US Needs India – The Anchor Amidst Geopolitical Chaos

The geopolitical storm with multiple conflicts and Trump's disruptive politics is churning the global arena. The concept of power and stability is now a quicksand with alliances in constant pendulum swing, supply chains confused,...

RIC, SCO and the Global Chessboard: India’s Real Test of Strategic Autonomy

The images from Tianjin spoke more than visuals. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared the podium with Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, it was more than a...

America’s War Machine, Not Modi’s: The Truth Behind Ukraine

Peter Navarro’s attempt to brand the Ukraine conflict as “Modi’s war” is more than absurd political theatre. It is a calculated distraction from America’s own hand in fuelling and prolonging wars across the world....

Building Trust in India – China Relations Beyond Washington’s Shadow

The relationship between India and China is one of the most complex equations. Both countries are bound together by a common civilisational, economic dependency, and geographic destiny, but also exhibit cyclic patterns of confrontation...

Donbas at Breaking Point: Will it Reshape Europe?

As the war in Ukraine grinds through yet another scorching season, the territory of Donbas has again become the battleground between calm and endless conflict. The most recent peace talks, hype-filled Western conferences, and...

Mission Sudarshan Chakra: India’s Shield and Sword for the Wars of Tomorrow

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke on Independence Day about Mission Sudarshan Chakra, he invoked not only the divine weapon of Lord Krishna but also the civilisational memory of precision, speed, and decisive force....

Forging Self-Reliance: Accelerating Indigenous Capability in India’s Defence Sector

India stands at a critical juncture in its pursuit of strategic self-reliance. While the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative aims to shift the nation’s defence trajectory, the truth is more ambiguous. Despite policy declarations and assurances,...
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