Lecture on
“Understanding Pakistan: Internal dynamics, mindset and Indo-Pak relations”

by Tilak Devasher
Former Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India

Saturday | 29 September 2018 | 11.00 am – 12.30 pm

Organised by The International Centre Goa

Entry free & open to general public

Tilak Devasher is the author of Pakistan: Courting the Abyss (HarperCollins, 2016) and Pakistan: At the Helm (HarperCollins, 2018). Khaled Ahmed, a noted Pakistani commentator described Courting the Abyss as “easily the best book on Pakistan.” Tilak retired as Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India in October 2014 and earlier served in Jammu & Kashmir and abroad. During his professional career, he specialized on security issues, especially pertaining to India’s neighbourhood. Since his retirement, he has continued to take a keen interest in such issues with special focus on Pakistan, and has written for Economic Times, Indian Express, India Today, Vivekananda International Foundation, South Asia Monitor and others. He has also appeared on TV shows on India Today, Times Now, Rajya Sabha TV, Aaj Tak, WION and CNBC. Tilak is an alumnus of Mayo College, Ajmer and St. Stephen’s College, Delhi.

The lecture will go beyond current issues and headlines and try to answer more fundamental questions about Pakistan. Why is it such a troubled and troublesome state? Why is Pakistan’s survival frequently called into question? Are its problems of recent origin or rooted in its very genesis? The lecture will explain developments in Pakistan from the perspective of the Pakistan Movement during which the seeds of many current problems were sown, of which the opportunistic use of religion was the most lethal. A unique feature of the lecture will be the ‘WEEP Analysis’ – an acronym for water, education, economy and population. Collectively, without remedial action, these WEEP factors strongly suggest a looming multi-organ failure in Pakistan. The lecture will also highlight the Pakistani mindset (especially of the army), the reason for its continued hostility towards India and the impact on Indo-Pak relations. Finally, the lecture will touch upon leadership in Pakistan over the last seven decades and discuss whether Imran Khan will be able to make a difference.