What to Read in The Hindu Editorial( Topic and Syllabus wise)

Editorial 1: Decisive intervention

Context

Accepting Aadhaar as the 12th option is an important step toward fairer voter verification.

Introduction

The Supreme Court’s intervention in Bihar’s electoral roll revision marks a vital course correction. By directing the Election Commission of India (ECI) to accept Aadhaar as valid proof, the Court safeguarded the fundamental right to vote. This ruling exposed flaws in the ECI’s reasoning, ensured inclusivity, and reaffirmed that procedural rigidity must not disenfranchise legitimate citizens.

Supreme Court’s Intervention in Bihar’s Electoral Roll Revision

Judicial Course Correction

• The Supreme Court directed the Election Commission of India (ECI)to include Aadhaar among the 12 valid documents for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar’s electoral rolls.
• This intervention safeguards the fundamental right to vote, ensuring procedural rules do not disenfranchise lakhs of eligible citizens.

Flaws in ECI’s Reasoning

• ECI argued Aadhaar was proof of residency, not citizenship, hence inadmissible.
• The Court highlighted the inconsistency:
  • Nine of the other 11 documents (except passport and birth certificate) also do not conclusively prove citizenship.
  • Excluding Aadhaar while accepting these was unjustified.
• Court allowed Aadhaar’s use, subject to authenticity verification.

Preventing Mass Disenfranchisement

• Aadhaar is held by nearly 90% of Bihar’s population, while passports are held by only ~2%.
• Excluding Aadhaar risked large-scale exclusion of genuine voters, especially the poor and marginalised.
• Already, 65 lakh electors were excludedin the draft roll due to the ECI’s rushed process.

Evidence of Anomalies in Exclusions

• Statistical analysis (The Hindu) revealed:
  • Disproportionate removal of women voters.
  • Unusually high death ratesrecorded in some areas.
  • Questionable “permanent shifts” shown for migrant workers and married women.
• These patterns indicate a flawed, hasty processthat endangered legitimate voters’ rights.

Significance of Aadhaar Inclusion

• Restores voting rights for those unfairly struck off.
• Eases verification for existing votersneeding document proof.
• Upholds civil society and political appealsagainst ECI’s earlier exclusionary stance.
• Aligns electoral practice with India’s current identity verification realities.

Wider Implications

• Sets a precedent beyond Bihar, influencing future electoral roll revisions across India.
• Reaffirms that the goal of electoral roll revisionis not speed, but accuracy and inclusivity.
• Calls on ECI to:
  • Adopt a diligent and humane approach.
  • Conduct thorough house-to-house verification.
  • Ensure India’s electoral roll remains accurate, inclusive, and representative

Conclusion

The Supreme Court’s order to include Aadhaar in the electoral roll revision strengthens democratic participation. It restores fairness for 65 lakh excluded voters, especially the poor and women, while setting a precedent nationwide. For the ECI, the priority must shift from haste to accuracy and inclusivity, ensuring the electoral roll remains representative and truly reflects the foundation of India’s democracy.

 

Editorial 2: The long march ahead to technological independence

Context

Today, independence is incomplete without technological sovereignty, for dependence itself has become a source of vulnerability.

Introduction

On August 15, 2025, India celebrated its 79th Independence Day, marking the nation’s hard-won political freedom. However, in the present era, independence cannot be measured by politics alone. True sovereignty today demands technological autonomy, as technology influences and shapes every aspect of modern life — from governance and economy to security and daily living.

Cybersecurity and Digital Sovereignty

• Geopolitics is growing darker, with wars increasingly fought using software, drones, and cyber weaponsrather than traditional arms.
• The most damaging battlefield is cyberspace, where critical infrastructure is at risk.
• India’s banks, railways, and power gridsdepend heavily on information and communication technology (ICT).
• A small number of companies — mostly from a single foreign country— build and control these systems.
• This dependency creates a serious vulnerabilityfor national security.
• If these companies were to shut down cloud or AI services, whether by government diktat or malicious intent, the consequences would be severe.
• Recent incidents, where cloud services were abruptly stopped, highlight that this is not hypothetical but a real threat.
• India must urgently confront and mitigate this riskto safeguard its digital sovereignty.

Building the foundation

• Technological autonomyis essential for India’s future.
• India currently lacks its own operating system, database, and foundational software, leaving it dependent on external sources.
• The path to independenceis not as difficult as it may appear.
• The open-source modelprovides a practical solution.
• India can build secure, backdoor-free versions of Linux and Android.
• A dedicated team of professionalscan achieve this.
• The bigger challenge lies in long-term support and maintenance.
• A large and supportive user baseis critical for a viable home-grown OS.
• Even if slightly behind global products, such systems can be made competitive and effective.
• This mission requires India’s technology communityto step up collectively.
• The issue affects everyone, but the solution lies with IT professionalswho shape the digital world.
• No single institution can achieve this alone — success demands a united effortacross stakeholders.

Hardware vs. Software Sovereignty

• Achieving hardware sovereigntyis far more challenging than software.
• Semiconductor fabsrequire massive, long-term national investment in chip design, manufacturing, and supply chains.
• India must ask: do we have the resourcesand more importantly, the patience?
• A practical first step: focus on specific hardware componentsand build partnerships in chip design and assembly, even if fabrication is outsourced.

Path to Technological Independence

• India’s political independencewas achieved through non-violence; its technology independence should come via open-source software.
• This is about self-reliance, not opposition to others.
• The global open-source movementhas weakened; control now lies with centralised cloud platforms and external corporations.
• A renewed social movement for autonomy in software and hardwareis urgently needed.

India’s Readiness

• India has the talentand capability to lead.
• What is needed is the collective willto act.
• Start with an urgent mission of planning, development, and executionbefore a crisis compels action.

First Steps in Software Independence

• Assemble a crack teamto develop India’s own versions of essential software using open-source resources.
• Build client-side components: database, email client, calendar.
• Build server-side components: web server, email server, cloud server.
• Open-source versions exist, but teams must update, maintain, and innovate
• Teams should operate like product teams in companies, supported by a sustainable business model, not only government or private funds.

Changing Climate for Trusted Software

• Earlier, only strategic sectorsworried about secure software.
• Now, even private companiesand individuals are concerned about dependency on external forces.
• People already pay indirectlyfor open-source tools (e.g., through services).
• Transitioning to a model where costs are explicitand support trusted, self-reliant software is a small but vital step.

Conclusion

The immediate priority is to create a mission that focuses on implementation, not on research and development for academic communities. This mission must rely on strong development teams, dedicated support engineers, and an effective project management team to ensure smooth coordination. India already has ample expertise in both industry and academia to drive this forward, provided a viable model is designed. The government must play an enabling role, but the ultimate aim should be to establish a self-sustaining framework at the earliest. Together, we must embark on the long march toward technological independence, securing India’s innovation ecosystem for the future.