India one of the five countries having half of $1 trillion illicit financial flows, has poor World Peace Index: Report

By A Representative
A new international report has noted a worrying trend for India. Titled “World Peace Index 2016”, the report says, India is one of the five countries in the world – alongside China, Russia, Mexico and Malaysia – which are involved in most of the illicit financial flows to other countries.
Referring to an International Finance Corporation (IFC) indicator of illicit financial flows for 145 relevant countries, the report says, “Whilst this measure is an estimate and cannot show the granularity required by the indicator, it does allow for prioritisation of efforts.”
The report, brought out by non-profit think tank with offices in New York and Sidney, the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), says, “According to the IFC, of the over US$1 trillion in illicit financial flows in 2013, over half was from five countries. With the exception of Malaysia, these countries are all in the 20 largest economies in the world.”
Ranking in Global Peace Index (GPI) of 163 countries, the report has placed India as one of the worst in the world at 141th position, a slight “improvement” from the 143rd position it occupied a year ago. However, it finds that the overall GPI score of India has deteriorated in a year from 2.504 to 2.566. The improvement in ranking, therefore, has more to do with a higher deterioration in GPI of other countries, especially of the Middle East, it suggests.

The GPI score is calculated on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 having the performance, and 5 worst. Thus, Iceland, with a score of 1.192, was found as the best performing country, and Syria with a score of 3.308 as the worst.

World Peace Index

Referring to the situation in South Asia, the report says, “Overall, the individual overall scores of Afghanistan, Nepal and India deteriorated, while for Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Pakistan, scores improved modestly.” It adds, “The influence of the Taliban from Afghanistan has been particularly strong. As a result, Pakistan remains second from the bottom in South Asia.”

As for India, it says, the country “scores for ongoing domestic and international conflict and militarisation have deteriorated slightly.” It calculates, India’s “violence containment cost” as percentage of GDP is a whopping 9 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP). It adds, "India increased its number of military personnel, from 2.15 to 2.72 million, a 27 per cent increase."
At the same time, it notes, “The country remains vulnerable to acts of terror and security threats at its shared border with Pakistan. As such, the number of deaths caused by externally organised terror strikes has risen over the year.”
On Sri Lanka, it says, it has “improved its ties with India, which is reflected in an improvement in its score for relationships with neighbouring countries. Military expenditure has also been cut as threats to internal stability gradually dissipate, but the country’s impact of terrorism score deteriorated slightly.”
According to the report, “The world became slightly less peaceful in 2016, with the average GPI country score deteriorating by 0.53 per cent.” It adds, “Over the past year, 81 countries improved their peacefulness, while 79 countries deteriorated.”
It says, “Violent crime improved in 13 countries and deteriorated in only five. The largest absolute change occurred in Libya. The impact of terrorism deteriorated in 77 countries, while improving in 48. Only 37 of the 163 countries measured had no impact of terrorism. The largest deterioration in this indicator was in the Middle East and North Africa.”
---
Download full report HERE

Comments

'Tax the top': Nationwide protests demand action as 1% control 40% of India’s wealth

By A Representative Civil rights groups across the country observed the martyrdom day of Bhagat Singh on March 23, as people from diverse backgrounds united to raise their voices against growing economic inequality. The mobilisations marked the launch of a nationwide campaign against inequality, running from March 23 to April 14 (Ambedkar Jayanti), under the banner of the “Tax The Top” campaign.

Fair prices, fresh produce: Vegetable market opens in Rajasthan tribal village

By Vikas Meshram* On 18 March 2026, the tribal village of Sajjangarh in southern Rajasthan witnessed the grand and dignified inauguration of a new vegetable market (mandi). Established through the tireless joint efforts of the Krushi Avam Adivasi Swaraj Sangathan (Bhilkuaan) and Vaagdhara, under the active leadership of the Gram Panchayat of Sajjangarh, the market is being hailed as a cornerstone for local self-governance, self-reliance, and a sustainable rural economy.

Study links sanctions to 500,000 deaths annually leading to rise in global backlash

By Bharat Dogra International opinion is increasingly turning against the expanding burden of sanctions imposed on a growing number of countries. These measures are contributing to humanitarian crises, intensifying domestic discord, and heightening international tensions, thereby increasing the risks of conflicts and wars.

Ex-IAS Atanu Chakraborty and a tale of two different Gujarat vision documents

By Rajiv Shah The likely appointment of Atanu Chakraborty as HDFC Bank chairman interested me for several reasons, but above all because I have interacted with him closely during my more than 14 year stint in Gandhinagar for the “Times of India”. One of the few decent Gujarat cadre bureaucrats, Chakraborty, belonging to the 1985 IAS batch, at least till I covered Sachivalaya was surely above controversies. He loved to remain faceless, never desired publicity, was professional to the core, and never indulged in loose talk. When he neared retirement, which happened in April 2020, first there were rumours in Sachivalaya that he would be appointed SEBI chairman, and then there was talk he would be chairman (or was it CEO?) of Gujarat International Finance Tec (GIFT) City (a dream project of Narendra Modi as Gujarat chief minister, which as Prime Minister Modi wants to promote, come what may). But, for some strange reasons, and I don’t know why, none of this happened, despite the fact...

Witnessing Iran beyond propaganda: Truth, war, and the path beyond western paradigm

By Naile Manjarrés On June 23, 2025—marked as the 2nd of Tir, 1404, on the Persian calendar—a ceasefire between Iran and Israel was announced. This "night of the decree" shifted the trajectory of global affairs; although the world may appear unchanged on the surface, we have yet to fully grasp its impact.

When democracy becomes a performance: The Tibetan exile experience

By Tseten Lhundup* I was born in Bylakuppe, one of the largest Tibetan settlements in southern India. From childhood, I grew up in simple barracks, along muddy roads, and in fields with limited resources. Over the years, I have watched our democratic system slowly erode. Observing the recent budget session of the 17th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, these “democratic procedures” appear grand and orderly on the surface, yet in reality they amount to little more than empty formalities. The parliamentarians seem largely disconnected from the everyday struggles faced by ordinary exiled Tibetans like us.

Environmental expert urges policy overhaul as forest and water resources face critical decline

By A Representative On the occasion of World Forest Day and World Water Day , observed on March 21 and 22, environmental voices from the Western Ghats have issued a stark warning to the Union government, calling for an urgent paradigm shift in how India manages its interconnected natural resources. In a formal communication addressed to Union Minister for Jal Shakti , Sri C R Patil , and Union Minister for Forest, Environment and Climate Change , Sri Bhupendra Yadav , policy analyst Shankar Sharma has highlighted a growing disconnect between sectoral policies and the holistic reality of resource governance.

Gujarat cadre to HDFC: When bureaucratic style hits corporate walls

By Rajiv Shah I was a little amused by the abrupt March 17, 2026 resignation of Atanu Chakraborty —a Gujarat cadre IAS officer of the 1985 batch who retired from the government in 2020—as chairman of HDFC Bank . Much of what may have led to his decision to quit this ostensibly high post—actually a non-executive, part-time role—is by now well known. I followed most of it online with considerable interest, partly because I had interacted with him umpteen times during my stint as The Times of India correspondent in Gandhinagar from 1997 to 2012.

Weaponised bravery, institutionalised cowardice as the engine of authoritarianism

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak* The insidious politics of crony capitalism is accelerating at an unprecedented pace, aided by the reckless expansion of artificial intelligence and other technologies designed not to liberate but to dominate, domesticate, and dehumanise societies. Alongside this, an illiberal politics of cowardice is emerging—serving as an accomplice to dehumanisation amid growing imperialist wars and conflicts across the world. Death in distant lands no longer stirs conscience. The push-button culture of digital screens has transformed social media into a disconnected, individualised, Hobbesian space, where the puritan pursuit of self-interest is elevated as the essence of human existence.

Search This Blog