IISPPR

THE RETURN OF ECONOMIC STATECRAFT – Sanctions, Supply Chains and the Restructuring of Global Dependence

Authors: Shivangi Kaushik, Tanisha Banthia, Reena Choudhary, Mahima Chaudhary, Diyaa Goswami, Drushti Vagal and Noel Mathew ABSTRACT This article views the reestablished significance of economic statecraft in international relations, especially the major powers’ strategic employing of sanctions and supply-chain management. The authors of this paper argue against the ideas of liberal thinkers which suggest that economic interdependence is a guarantee of stability, by claiming that contemporary globalization has driven states that are strategically located in the financial and production networks to turn economic ties into a weapon for geopolitical advantage. The qualitative comparative case-study method is employed in the paper to explore two important cases, namely the United States–China technology conflict and the EU’s sanctioning of Russia in connection with the Ukraine crisis. These cases indicate that economic coercion seldom results in instant political surrender; rather, it precipitates longterm structural changes like switching suppliers, cutting ties, and moving production locations. The research adds to the discussion on interdependence through the use of power by clarifying that the use of economic statecraft is not a matter of short-term punishment but rather of changing globally dependent patterns in a highly disunited international order.

Read More »

Evaluating the Potential Economic Effects of Neuralink-Type Brain–Computer Interfaces on Labor Market Outcomes for Impaired and Non-Impaired Populations

Authors: Arushi Rohilla, Shaikh Altamash Khalid, Akshara A, Ayush Singh, Sourav Midya, Vaidehi Dudhrejiya ABSTRACT Over 40% of the world’s population suffers from at least one type of neurological disease with neurological conditions accounting for 11.1 million deaths yearly. Treatment methods for neurological diseases have received increasing scholarly and clinical attention. BCI stands for Brain Computer Interfaces- a device that interfaces neural electrical activity with external devices. Conventionally, they serve as assistive devices. A prominent example within this class of technologies is the N1 implant developed by Neuralink, a US-based neurotechnology company founded in 2016, developing high-bandwidth, fully implantable BCIs moving beyond traditional assistive and compensatory devices several implications for behavioural and economic outcomes. Essentially, the chip detects brain neural activity through electrodes and allows individuals to control external devices with their thoughts, not by voice command or eye tracking but through direct neural signals translated into digital commands. Neuralink’s work with brain–computer interfaces (BCIs) are primarily designed for people who have lost the physical ability to move, speak, or sense the world, even though their minds remain active and capable. These physical limitations often block people from fully participating in education, social life, and the workforce, essentially capping their potential contributions to society, often referred to by economists as “human capital. For individuals with lost motor abilities, BCIs like Neuralink can restore autonomy and functioning and can contribute to inclusion into workforce, gains in skillset, educational development. However, this raises profound questions and concerns: with the development of such invasive technology, are we potentially altering aspects of human identity through technological mediation? Does the widespread commercialisation of such technology, though decades away, raise the possibility of applying this technology to non-neurologically-affected individuals, implying enhanced cognitive abilities beyond typical human capacity? Neuralink’s launch into public media has raised scientific curiosity, controversy and ethical concerns- similar to AI. Tracing back to AI evolution, AI was created to stimulate human intelligence in machines. Today, we find ourselves dependent, and use it as an assistive tool from everyday functioning to large-scale tasks. At its core, technology confronts one of humanity’s oldest philosophical tensions: the relationship between mind and body, human agency, between human limitation and technological possibility. Neuralink allows us to reach potential that is unknown, and to discuss its implications is where this paper stands. This paper evaluates how Neuralink may alter labour market outcomes among both neurologically impaired and non-impaired populations. Through this paper, we aim to understand the role Neuralink could have post commercialization and wide-spread adoption. Our primary research objective is to understand the impact of Neuralink implantation on human capital formation and economic outcomes, with specific reference to labour force participation and wage premiums across different population groups.

Read More »

Legal and Ethical Frameworks for AI-Powered Disease Surveillance Systems: A Scoping Review

Authors: 1. Dr. Omkar Shinde 2. Sneha Naresh Yada 3. Calvin K. Makok 4. Karandeep Singh Sandh 5. Deeksha Ramesh Banger 6. Saniya Khan 7. Dr. Devraj Bikash Das 8. Shraddha Jain ABSTRACT Background: Artificial intelligence (AI)–enabled disease surveillance systems have become increasingly prominent in public health, particularly during recent global health emergencies. While these technologies offer potential benefits for early outbreak detection and response, their widespread deployment raises complex ethical and legal questions that remain insufficiently synthesised. Objective: This scoping review aimed to map the existing legal and ethical frameworks governing AI-powered disease surveillance systems, identify dominant themes across jurisdictions, and highlight gaps relevant to policy and governance. Methods: A qualitative scoping review was conducted following the Arksey and O’Malley framework and reported in accordance with the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Searches were performed across major biomedical and legal databases, supplemented by authoritative policy and regulatory documents. The included sources were synthesised using thematic analysis to capture recurring ethical and legal concerns. Results: The reviewed literature demonstrated substantial heterogeneity in governance approaches across regions. Privacy and data protection emerged as the most frequently discussed ethical concerns, alongside challenges related to informed consent, accountability, transparency, and equity. Legal frameworks varied widely, with comprehensive data protection regimes in some jurisdictions contrasted by fragmented or outdated regulatory structures elsewhere. Across settings, a consistent gap was observed between high-level ethical principles and their operationalisation in enforceable governance mechanisms. Conclusions: AI-powered disease surveillance is governed by diverse and evolving legal and ethical frameworks, yet significant governance gaps persist. Addressing these gaps through context-sensitive, enforceable, and equity-oriented regulatory approaches will be essential to ensure responsible and trustworthy use of AI in public health surveillance.

Read More »

Biases in Hiring and Admissions: A Qualitative Study of Gender, Race, and Disability

Authors: Mohammed Faizaan, Kashvi Mangal, Richard Odhiambo Okech, Vaibhavi Gunjan, Aparna Jha, Manishita Das, Ikpa Ochanya Euginia, Chrisma Gabriela ABSTRACT Stereotypes in recruitment and admission continue to shape approaches for possibilities regardless of the developing commitments to inclusion, equality and equity. This abstract evaluates how biases based on gender, race or disability influence the overall decision making processes in selection, recruitment and admission. Gender-based stereotypes often assume manifestations about lack of leadership quality, emotional capacity, commitment towards career, this results in the discriminative evaluation of candidates. Bias based on race controls through both obvious biases and subtle systematic biases such as name-based biases, hampering ethical screening and testing schemes, disadvantage towards individuals from marginalized communities who suffer from disproportionality in academics and professionalism. Disability based stereotypes, often overlooked, reflect an discriminative attitude that evaluates and correlates disability with incompetence or excessive infrastructural expense, leading to the aligned and structured way of exclusion of qualified candidates based on biases. This abstract particularly further highlights the influence of unconscious bias which is exclusively rooted deep inside social and cultural conditioning of mindset and organizational cultures. Such stereotypes not only pulls from fairness and equity but also restricts organizational inclusivity, innovation and individual dignity. By neutralizing structural inequalities, these biases in hiring and admission results in long term organizational loss and underdevelopment. Using contextual terminologies like “racism” in western context, “castebased discrimination” in south Asian context and “ethnicity based” stereotypes in multicultural regions, the paper ensures the acknowledgement of accuracy and inclusivity in order to sustain the ethical and dignified representation. The topic demands for the need of transparency, standard recruitment methods and inclusivity that actively challenge all such biases. Acknowledging biases is not only an ethical or legal obligation or duty but a crucial step for the upliftment of the entire society by instilling meritocracy, institutional diversity, justice, human policy and overall achievement of ethical organizational goals and objectives in both professional and academic fields.

Read More »

An Analysis of Crimes Against Women in India: Evaluating the Efficacy of Legal Reforms and Urban Safety Initiatives

Authors: 1. MANASA NALLAPURAJU 2. MANSHI MAAN 3. PRAGATI SINGH 4. SNEHA S S 5. VIRINCH BHASKAR PADMNABHAM ABSTRACT This study reflects on the enduring gap that exists between the different laws that have been set up in India over the years and how safe women really are. It is noted that after the “Nirbhaya” incident in 2012 the Indian government shifted from a colonial, era protectionist approach to an autonomy, based jurisprudence, leading to the enactment of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023 as part of India’s broader criminal law restructuring framework intended to strengthen responses to gender-based violence.16 This report, however, argues that these reforms are still one of the “reactive legislative wins” which do not acknowledge a sizable judicial and fiscal administration implementation gap. By institutional performance audit, the research identifies judicial lethargy and long-standing shortages in judicial manpower remain central constraints, with national pendency levels exceeding five crore cases across courts.23 as the primary causes of the justice system where trial pendency cancels the deterrent effect of stricter penalties. The research uncovers the “safety paradox” of urban governance, in which fiscal resources are disproportionately allocated toward surveillancebased interventions rather than structural prevention mechanisms.20, 21 in that most of the fiscal resources are being used for “negative liberty” measures, such as technological surveillance, which places the responsibility of safety on the victim instead of dealing with the root social causes. In addition, this paper argues against the “literacy myth” and arguesthat formal education is an insufficient solution for violence arising from patriarchal social control. When compared to international “wellbeing” models, such as New Zealand’s Te Aorerekura national prevention strategy, which frames violence prevention as a long-term wellbeing obligation coordinated across justice, health, and social institutions14, the study suggests a shift towards implementation, focused governance. The following sections build on this argument by situating the issue within global and national contexts, followed by an analysis of institutional, fiscal, and urban governance factors shaping women’s safety in India.

Read More »

Digital Childhood at Risk: Rethinking Cybersecurity Through the Human Lens

ABSTRACT As children increasingly navigate the digital world for education, social recreation, and interaction, they face a growing spectrum of cyber threats that exploit child vulnerabilities rather than technical flaws. This paper reframes cybersecurity as a child rights issue, focusing on how behavioral factors such as curiosity, trust, and limited digital awareness make young users particularly susceptible to online exploitation. Employing a multidisciplinary methodology, the study draws on case studies, global cybersecurity incident reports, behavioral research, and policy analysis to examine how malicious social engineering infiltrates child-centric platforms, especially gaming and social media. It proposes a human-centered cybersecurity framework that integrates age-appropriate digital literacy, accessible safety tools, and ethical design principles to safeguard digital well-being. The paper advocates for treating cybersecurity as an essential component of childhood, calling for coordinated action among educators, policymakers, technology designers, and guardians to build safer, more principled online ecosystems for vulnerable populations.

Read More »

Beyond Firewalls: The Human Factor in Cybersecurity

Authors: 1. ABHIMANYU CHHIBBER (Graduate, Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi) 2. PRANAV SARNA (Student, Amity University) ABSTRACT “In the shadows of the digital realm, cybercrimes have emerged as a formidable threat to global security, economic stability, and personal privacy.” As technology embeds itself deeper into daily life, the vulnerabilities it carries have grown exponentially. This article explores cybercrime as a global complication advanced by rapid technological progression, highlighting the urgent need for cybersecurity and international cooperation. It underscores the critical role of the human element in cyberattacks, identifies systemic flaws in current defense mechanisms, and advocates for a multidisciplinary, collaborative model of cyber resilience. Drawing on digital trends and current evidence, this research offers a comprehensive perspective directed towards fostering a more nuanced and actionable cybersecurity framework that accounts for the intricate interplay between human behavior and technological infrastructure in combating cyber threats.

Read More »

An Empirical Study on Trust, Perceived Risk, and User Satisfaction in AI-Enabled FinTech Platforms

Author: Ayushi ABSTRACT This study investigates how trust and perceived risk influence user satisfaction and continuance intention in AI-enabled FinTech platforms. Drawing on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), and Trust-Commitment Theory, we develop and test a structural model using primary survey data from 412 users of digital banking and payment applications. Structural equation modeling (SEM) reveals that trust positively influences user satisfaction (β = 0.47, p < 0.001) and continuance intention (β = 0.38, p < 0.001), while perceived risk negatively affects both satisfaction (β = −0.29, p < 0.01) and continuance intention (β = −0.24, p < 0.01). Trust also partially mediates the relationship between perceived risk and satisfaction. Perceived ease of use and AI service efficiency emerge as significant antecedents of satisfaction. The findings carry practical implications for FinTech platform design, regulatory policy, and strategies to enhance user engagement in AI-driven financial services

Read More »

(Borders, Bodies and Broken Laws) Transnational Human Trafficking of Women: A Comparative Study of Legal Enforcement and State Accountability in the USA, India & Nigeria.

Authors: Prangya Jyoti Samal, Amarilli Cuda, Musheer ul Hasan Ekrema, Gitonga Christine, Allan Odhong, Tejas Singh Charan, Mansewak Singh ABSTRACT This study examines transnational human trafficking of women as a critical failure of legal enforcement and stateaccountability, through a comparative analysis of the United States, Nigeria, and India. While all three countries formally align with international frameworks such as the Palermo Protocol, significant gaps persist between legal provisions and their implementation. The research highlights systemic challenges including weak enforcement, judicial delays, inadequate border governance, and the re-victimization of survivors within legal processes. It argues that human trafficking is not merely a criminal issue but a reflection of deeper governance failures. The study concludes that without stronger accountability mechanisms and a shift towards victim-centered approaches, existing legal frameworks will remain ineffective in delivering justice and deterrence.

Read More »

SKILL INDIA MISSION AND YOUTH EMPLOYABILTIY: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SELECTED INDIAN STATES

Author: Nivedita Shukla, Vaishnavi Sathe ABSTRACT This study is designed to explore the relationship between the Skill India Mission and youth employability in some Indian states. Essentially, this study is intended to analyze the role of the Skill India Mission in promoting the employability of young individuals in the country by bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and industry needs, in line with the Indian government’s efforts to develop a competitive workforce in the country. In this study, the researcher presents a comparative analysis of the implementation and outcomes of the Skill India Mission in different states in India, highlighting some aspects such as training outcomes, placement trends, and policy outcomes, in order to gain deeper insight into the influence of skill development programs on youth employability.The study reveals that the Skill India Mission has developed an important structural framework in the country for skill development on a large scale, but it is also important to address some challenges in this regard to ensure the effectiveness of this mission in promoting the employability of young individuals in the country.

Read More »