It is often said that the 18th Century was a period of chaos in India. However, it can be more appropriately called a period of transition. The long period of rule by the Turks, Afghans and Mughals gave way to a new indigenous Empire that arose from south of the Narmada; the first time a people from the Deccan entered Hindustan. Dr Kulkarni believes it was an important historical era where we had an indigenous Empire before we fell under another spell of foreign rule.
From the mid seventeenth to early nineteenth century, the Marathas came into prominence and their objective throughout the period remained Delhi. From a bestower of favours, the Emperor was reduced to a Maratha protectorate. This talk is on this eventful period, when the Maratha flag appeared and fluttered in Delhi through most of the 18th century.
From Iran's burning strait to Pakistan's quiet unraveling, from Beijing's Taiwan calculus to Europe's frozen reckoning — five crises, one collapsing architecture, and the nations already building on the ruins of what the world pretended was permanent.
The Hormuz closure wasn't a miscalculation — it was the missing piece. With maritime routes uninsurable and IMEC the last corridor standing, Trump has seized control of global trade infrastructure through a private governance body accountable to no one but its chairman for life.
India's Ujjwala Yojana gave 100 million poor women clean cooking fuel and changed rural life forever. But every cylinder traveled through a single 33-kilometer strait. No reserve was built. No alternative was prepared. When Hormuz closed, the real catastrophe unfolded.
Examination infrastructure provided by TCS has shown to be compromised by groups within and from outside. It is time to consider these companies as "National Champions" and brought under proper security regulations.
