Category Thematic Areas

Unlawful Activities Prevention Act - 2026

Unlawful Activities Prevention Act – 2026

In the aftermath of independence, India was ‘pulled together’ to form the Union of States. Hence, even today, the Indian nation continues to face threats and challenges to its integrity and sovereignty. In 1967, in the wake of the Naxalbari movement in West Bengal, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) was enacted to protect the internal security of India. The Act was enacted to address anti-national and secessionist movements in India. In 1963, on the recommendation of the Committee on National Integration, reasonable restrictions were imposed under Article 19 (Freedom of speech and expression) against activities disturbing the integrity and sovereignty of India through the Constitutional (Sixteenth) Amendment Act. Through this Act, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act came into force.

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Storage: The Missing Piece in India’s Renewable Energy Puzzle

India continues to add renewable power generation capacity without any coherent strategy for its full utilisation, often ordering RE generation to back down to maintain grid stability. A vital deficit is a policy for storing renewable power, which is intermittent and missing from action for much of the day, forcing reliance on thermal power as India's mainstay.

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India’s Next Frontier: Building New Cities Right

Fast-growing countries urbanise, and the share of urban population rises. Since India has not had a Census since 2011, the size of the current urban population is an estimate. The World Bank puts it at 37%, below the world average of 58% and China’s level of 66%. Towns are where the bulk of economic activity, particularly in the modern, evolving sectors, takes place. If India is to grow, so must its total urban space.

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GST Cuts and the Illusion of Relief Amidst Global Tariffs

The recent Goods and Services Tax (GST) rate cuts in India have come against the backdrop of U.S. President Donald Trump's penal tariffs. On August 7, Trump signed an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on certain Indian goods so that these exports would now face at least 50% tariffs, compared to 30% on Chinese exports and 19% on Bangladeshi exports. Naturally, India's competitors stand to benefit, while Indian exports would decline sharply.

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Opening the Hills: The Ecological Cost of Land Reform

The Himachal Pradesh government has again opened the debate on relaxing Section 118 of the Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms Act, 1972 — a provision that has, for five decades, protected the state's most sacred resource: its land. Under this Section, a non-agriculturist cannot buy land in Himachal without prior permission from the state government. This legislative instrument ensures that land is not reduced to a commodity but continues to embody livelihood, culture and ecological balance.Today, in the name of "encouraging investment, industry, tourism and housing", the state government is tempted to loosen this protective clause. But to tamper with Section 118 is to play with fire.

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