Academic freedom index: German-Swedish report places India below Pakistan, Sri Lanka

By A Representative
A recent study “Free Universities Report: Putting the Academic Freedom Index Into Action”, jointly prepared by two institutes in Germany in Sweden has placed India below Pakistan in its Academic Freedom Index (AFi), stating India is among the “one-third of countries with the worst performances in 2019” with a “D” status, with an AFi score, between 0.4 and 0.2 on a scale of 1.
Stating that India is one of the country which have de jure guarantees in place, while extensive violations of academic freedom occur in practice.” The report has been prepared by Germany’s Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) and Sweden’s V-Dem Institute.
On a scale of 1, while Pakistan scores 0.554 and Sri Lanka 0.506, while India scores 0.352. As a matter of comparison, United Kingdom scores 0.934, Brazil 0.466, Singapore 0.411 and Russia 0.364 (a little better than India), while Bangladesh and China a poor 0.195 and 0.101 respectively (in E status, below 0.2). The report says, there was “insufficient data” to rate US and Australia along with several African countries, Burma and Afghanistan.

Comments

A fearless spirit lost: Rebecca Thomson dies at 17-hour Catalina Swim Mark

By Harsh Thakor On July 26, 2026, Rebecca “Becky” Thomson suffered cardiac arrest while attempting the Catalina Channel Swim — a marathon open water crossing from Catalina Island to the California mainland. After swimming for 17 hours, Thomson collapsed in the water. Despite the painstaking efforts of emergency responders and the medical staff at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, she succumbed to a devastating hypoxic brain injury and died Friday evening.

An open letter to PM: Before you forgive, ask for forgiveness

By Martin Macwan* Respected Prime Minister, The first step toward true forgiveness is asking for it, and it is out of respect for the Constitution that the title "Honourable" is used for the office of the Prime Minister. Every abuse is "dirty" because almost all abuse is uttered with the conscious intention of publicly humiliating a woman, much like the disrobing of Draupadi in the royal court. This includes remarks like "Jersey Cow," used at public meetings on the Gujarati land of Gandhi and Sardar; comparing a female MP's laughter in India's Parliament to "Surpanakha's laugh"; and using a vulgar address like "Didi O Didi" for a Chief Minister who holds a respected position in a democracy—along with every other such remark. In the 79-year history of independent India, you are better placed than anyone to say which Prime Minister has used such language against women.

Bihar’s land at ₹1 per acre for Adani sparks outrage, NAPM calls it crony capitalism

By A Representative The National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM) has strongly condemned the Bihar government’s decision to lease 1,050 acres of land in Pirpainti, Bhagalpur district, to Adani Power for a 2,400 MW coal-based thermal power project.

Counterview

Search This Blog