What to Read in Indian Express Editorial( Topic and Syllabus wise)

Editorial 1 : Tyre particles: How EVs are a climate solution with pollution problem

Context

By eliminating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, electric vehicles (EVs) play an important role in the fight against climate change. However, while contributing to solving one problem, they may be adding to another.

Bad news for tackling pollution

• A  study recently found out that EVs, on account of their greater weight, experience higher wear and tear in their tyres compared to conventional vehicles, andrelease substantially larger numbers of small plastic particles in the atmosphere.
• This could have adverse implications for the health of both humans and the environment.

How tyres are degraded

• The disintegration of automobile tyres results in the release of small rubber particles that are air pollutants.
• The normal wear and tear of tyres produces particles of broadly two sizes – one, about 1-10 micrometres; the other, more than 100 micrometres.
• Particles of intermediate sizes are also produced, but they are relatively fewer in number.
• The study by researchers for the first time, established the relationship between the weight and speed of a vehicle to the size of the plastic particles released from tyres as a result of wear and tear.
• Unlike the larger particles that settle on the ground due to gravity, smaller particles remain suspended in the air, adding to the concentration of air pollutants.
• Thus, degradation caused by sudden braking or encounters with potholes, which the researchers call “primary fragmentation”, results in the release of mainly smaller particles of varying sizes.
• And gradual wear and tear, called “sequential fragmentation”in the study, leads to the release of mainly larger particles.
• Thus, an improvement in road quality would likely reduce the release of larger particles, but would have little effect on the smaller particles.

Global relevance of study

• The results of the study are globally relevant because of the ongoing push for the adoption of EVs.
• Electric vehicles are significantly heavier than conventional petrol vehicles because of the batteries – which can weigh anything between 300 kg and 900 kg.
• The weight of the batteries necessitates the reinforcement of the vehicle frame, which adds to the overall weight.
• Typically, an EV is at least 15-20% heavier than a comparable conventional vehicle.
• EVs are also able to accelerate more rapidly. This can lead to additional stress on the tyres due to increased friction and heat generation.
• The tyres of EVs are, therefore, likely to undergo a greater degree of primary fragmentation, releasing larger amounts of smaller plastic particles that add to the concentration of pollutants in the atmosphere.
• The findings of the study shed new light on the relatively lesser-studied negative impacts of the deployment of EVs, which is being incentivised around the world.

GHG Emissions

• Road transport accounts for almost 10% of global GHG emissions, the result primarily of the burning of fuel in vehicles.
• EVs account for just about 2% of the global vehicle stock, but they contributed to about 20% of new car sales across the world last year,according to an International Energy Agency report.
• In India, about 2.5% of cars sold in 2024 were electrics. The government aims to take this figure to about 30% by 2030. In China, EVs accounted for almost half of all car sales last year.

Potential responses

• The researchers say their findings call for different kinds of response measures.
• Current air quality regulations in most countries are aimed at controlling PM2.5- and PM10-size particles. Tyre fragments are smaller than these.
• With the proliferation of EVs, and tyre fragments becoming a more noticeable constituent of air pollution, these regulations would probably need to be expanded.
• At the same time, tyre manufacturers would need to invest in research and development to produce sturdier tyres that are better suited to heavier EVs.
• Also, emissions standards would probably need to account for non-exhaust emissions from vehicles.

Conclusion

The researchers have also suggested possible technological fixes such as the possibility of capturing the small tyre fragments at the time of their release, preventing them from getting into the atmosphere.

 

Editorial 2 : India’s outreach to other nations marks a recalibrated diplomacy

Context

When terrorists struck Pahalgam’s meadow on April 22, it was not just to kill. It was an assault on India’s social cohesion, economic momentum, democratic ethos, and a deliberate attempt to wound the idea of India itself.

The changing dynamics of terrorism

• In much of the world, terrorism no longer holds the salience it once did post-9/11.
• Now, the sacrosanct principle of territorial integrity dominates European discourse; the misuse of artificial intelligence is deeply disconcerting to many; economic resilience in a trade order upended by US President Donald Trump remains a shared concern.
• The climate emergency is widely regarded as an existential threat; the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza reveals how numb the world has become to the pain of others.

India faces a diplomatic paradox

• Some ask, not unreasonably, why India needs to explain itself at all.
• Do great powers explain,  or do they simply act?
• Lest we forget, India is still rising, still integrating into global value chains, and still seeking leadership avenues.
• Promoting better international understanding of our policies amplifies rather than diminishes our national interest.
• Historically, diplomacy has followed conflict. That still remains true. But the battlefield has expanded.
• As Operation Sindoor unfolded, so did the parallel contest. It was a battleground of images, claims, and counterclaims, where information was curated to evoke emotion, misinformation was deployed as strategy, and propaganda was rebranded as policy.
• We are in a post-truth ecosystem, where ambiguity is weaponised and outrage algorithmically amplified.
• Pakistan is seeking to blur India’s gains through misinterpretation and deliberate distortion. In this altered terrain, India’s statecraft needed to adapt to counter Pakistan’s disinformation, deceit, and denial.

India’s unprecedented diplomatic outreach

• Seven cross-party delegations comprising over 50 Indian parliamentarians are travelling to 32 countries. Their task is to explain the logic, legality, and necessity of India’s new counter-terrorism doctrine to key decision-makers.
• India is not seeking applause or alignment, but comprehension and understanding.
• This is diplomacy of a different kind. Not performative patriotism, but strategic storytelling.
• It is designed to do three things: Showcase India’s political unity in combating terror, clarify India’s red lines to key global actors, and build narrative preparedness before the next inevitable provocation.
• The delegations are not limiting themselves to government ministries. They are reaching out to those who sculpt the opinion climate academics, journalists, legislators, and members of think tanks.
• This is a whole-of-society engagement, signalling Indian diplomacy’s readiness to move into the global marketplace of ideas.

Complement the traditional diplomacy

• These diplomatic forays do not replace traditional diplomacy; they complement it.
• Diplomacy happens not just in closed rooms but also on open platforms.
• India is not abandoning its classical tool kit. Instead, India is adapting it to meet the needs of an era where silence is spun into complicity and ambiguity into guilt.
• India is adjusting its diplomatic posture for a world where perception often precedes principle, and narratives define legitimacy before agreements are even reached.
• India is not chasing votes or tabulating friends and foes. That is a playbook used by revisionist powers seeking to disrupt the global order.
• India aims to reinforce the global consensus that terrorism is unjustifiable, unacceptable, and must be met with accountability.
• India’s diplomacy is pre-emptive. Its objective is to ensure that when the next provocation occurs, as it inevitably will, our partners are not surprised by our response.

Conclusion

Public diplomacy is gaining more space, even as traditional negotiation rooms shrink. Global attention now focuses more on social platforms than on summit communiqués. Today, persuasion begins as much on timelines as on transcripts. The involvement of experienced elected representatives enables India to meet this moment with agility, authenticity, and authority.