Lokendra Sharma

Publications

Discussion documents, policy briefs & issue briefs

  • India Must Architect Sectoral Plurilateral Blocs to Overcome Geopolitical Coercion

    Policy Brief · Takshashila Institution · January 2026

    This policy brief argues that India should architect sectoral plurilateral blocs to hedge against geopolitical risks. Further, India should continue its westward tilt to gain access to capital, markets, and technology while sustaining tactical engagement with China for infrastructure investments and market access.

  • Shanti Act Advances Reform, Streamlines and Dilutes Liability

    Issue Brief · Takshashila Institution · January 2026

    This issue brief discusses the highlights of the Shanti Act, situates it in the historical context of the Indian nuclear dream and offers recommendations for reviving nuclear energy.

  • Hacking Minds, Manipulating Machines: A Primer on Information Warfare

    Discussion Document · Takshashila Institution · 2025

    While information warfare is not new, the Information Age has imparted the former an unprecedented scale and reach. This primer explains the various forms, elements and features of information warfare. It examines the democratic trap and discusses the fundamental conundrum with information warfare — the double-edged sword nature of information power.

  • A Case for Establishing Special Science Zones in India

    Policy Brief · Takshashila Institution · 2025

    Inspired by the Special Economic Zones, this policy brief proposes the creation of Special Science Zones in India. The Special Science Zones are envisioned as concentrated research and innovation hubs with special administrative and economic rules to accelerate India’s scientific advancement.

  • Technopolitik: How Should India Navigate Technology Geopolitics?

    Public Survey · Takshashila Institution · April 2025

    Amid intense geopolitical contestations by major powers that increasingly spills into the high-tech domain, the “Technopolitik: A Technology Geopolitics Survey” set out to find out what Indian people think about how India should navigate high-tech geopolitics. Indian policymakers may consider the respondents’ bent towards the troika of economics, collaboration and talent while charting India’s path in the arena of high-tech geopolitics.

Journal articles

  • Maritime cybersecurity in the Indo-Pacific: envisioning a role for the Quad

    Journal Article · Journal of the Indian Ocean Region · 2024

    This paper argues that the Quad is most suited to address the issue of maritime cybersecurity in the Indo-Pacific. It proposes the creation of a hybrid body composed of the Quad, like-minded littoral states and maritime industry bodies from the Indo-Pacific for thwarting, responding to, and recovering from cyberattacks in the region. It argues that a localized regional response by the Quad would be preferable over unilateral measures by states or waiting for the IMO’s regulation in the form of a code or convention.

Book Review Articles

  • Diffusion, innovation and the tech-politics underlying power transitions

    Book Review Article · Indian Public Policy Review · 2025

    In Technology and the Rise of Great Powers, Ding examines the historical industrial revolutions (from 1780s onwards) to argue that it was diffusion of general purpose technologies as opposed to advantage in leading sectors that decided the outcome of great power transitions. In this review article, Ding’s framework is applied to India for discerning the lessons it holds for rising powers amid the ongoing Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Book reviews