India’s World, Volume 2, Issue 3, March 2026

India’s China Challenge

India’s World returns with an issue dedicated to one of the most enduring questions in Indian foreign policy: how should India understand and respond to the rise of China? Guest-edited by Jabin T. Jacob, India’s China Challenge examines a relationship that has moved far beyond periodic border crises to become the central structural condition shaping India’s strategic thinking.

The cover story section brings together scholars and practitioners to examine the challenge from diverse perspectives. Kajari Kamal questions the easy invocation of Kautilya and Sun Tzu in Indian strategic debates, while Devendra Kumar revisits the unresolved Tibet question. TSV Ramana and Anshuman Narang analyse India’s military understanding of the PLA and the evolving capabilities of China’s Western Theatre Command. Other contributions explore the broader landscape of competition—from higher education and technological innovation to hydrogen energy, corporate practices, and global economic governance.

Beyond strategy and security, the issue also looks at the cultural and political imagination surrounding China. Essays on political cartoons, science fiction, and even Beijing’s surprising engagement with global cricket reveal how power today is exercised through narratives and influence as much as through material capabilities.

Alongside the China focus, India’s World continues its wide intellectual canvas with essays on geopolitics, international theory, history, and art and culture. Together, they remind us that understanding global power requires not only strategic analysis but also attention to ideas, memory, and creativity.

India’s China Challenge captures a moment when India must rethink institutions, knowledge, and strategy to navigate its most consequential external relationship.