Praful Bidwai
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Praful Bidwai (12 June 1949 – 23 June 2015) was an Indian journalist, political analyst, and activist. He was known for his left-leaning analysis of India's politics and economics. In Bidwai's memory, his friends, including The
Transnational Institute The Transnational Institute (TNI), is an international non-profit research and advocacy think tank that was founded in 1974, Amsterdam, Netherlands. According to their website, the organization promotes a "... just, democratic and sustainable wor ...
, created the Praful Bidwai Memorial Award intended to honor and highlight courageous and independent voices in journalism.


Journalist and columnist

Praful Bidwai was a political analyst and commentator, a social science researcher, and an activist on issues of peace, global justice, human rights and environmental protection. He died of a cardiac arrest on 23 June 2015 while he was attending a conference in Amsterdam. Bidwai's journalistic career spanned over four decades. His first notable work in journalism was as a columnist for the "Economic and Political Weekly", beginning in 1972. He then worked for magazines and newspapers including "Business India", "Financial Express" and "The Times of India" between 1981 and 1993, eventually becoming its senior editor. He was "The Times group's" most published journalist for 20 years, writing analytical and investigative articles on themes including politics and political economy; economic policy and industrialization strategies; international relations; energy, the environment and sustainable development; religion, ethnicity and politics; social conflict, communalism and nationalism; science and technology; and nuclear weapons disarmament and peace. Bidwai was a columnist whose articles were published regularly in the ''
Hindustan Times ''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia. It was founded by Sunder Singh Lyall ...
'', ''
Frontline Front line refers to the forward-most forces on a battlefield. Front line, front lines or variants may also refer to: Books and publications * ''Front Lines'' (novel), young adult historical novel by American author Michael Grant * ''Frontlines ...
'',
Rediff.com Rediff.com (stylized as ''rediff.com'') is an Indian news, information, entertainment and shopping web portal. It was founded in 1996. It is headquartered in Mumbai, with offices in Bangalore, New Delhi and New York City. , it had more than 300 e ...
, and other outlets. He had also been published in ''The Guardian'' (London), ''The Nation'' (New York), ''Le Monde Diplomatique'' (Paris), and ''Il Manifesto'' (Rome).


Left activism

Praful Bidwai was a well known face of left intellectual tradition in Indian media. Analysis of gradual erosion of left in Indian politics was the subject of his deep study. He himself had taken part in various left-leaning regional movements in the past and was in long-term association with them even after. The last book that he authored just a few months before his death was regarding the possibilities of the revival of Indian left politics. He was incredibly anti-communal and championed civil liberty and secularism. Bidwai had been a professorial fellow at the Centre for Social Development, New Delhi, and also a senior fellow at the
Nehru Memorial Museum and Library The Nehru Memorial Museum & Library (NMML) is a museum and library in New Delhi, India, which aims to preserve and reconstruct the history of the Indian independence movement. Housed within the Teen Murti House complex, it is an autonomous ins ...
. He had also served as a member of the
Indian Council of Social Science Research The Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) is the national body overseeing research in the social sciences in India. It was established in New Delhi in 1969. Council The Council is currently chaired by Bhushan Patwardhan. Current ...
, the Central Advisory Board on Education, and the
National Book Trust National Book Trust (NBT) is an Indian publishing house, which was founded in 1957 as an autonomous body under the Ministry of Education of the Government of India. The activities of the Trust include publishing, promotion of books and reading, ...
.


Peace activism

Bidwai was also a veteran
peace activist A peace movement is a social movement which seeks to achieve ideals, such as the ending of a particular war (or wars) or minimizing inter-human violence in a particular place or situation. They are often linked to the goal of achieving world peac ...
with anti-Imperialist moorings. He helped found the Movement in India for Nuclear Disarmament (MIND), based in
New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
, was a member of the International Network of Engineers and Scientists against Proliferation, and was one of the leaders of the Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament and Peace, India. Along with Achin Vanaik, Bidwai was the author of ''New Nukes: India, Pakistan and Global Nuclear Disarmament'' (Interlink, 1999). In 2000, Bidwai and Vanaik were awarded the Sean McBride International Peace Prize by the
International Peace Bureau The International Peace Bureau (IPB) (french: Bureau international de la paix), founded in 1891, is one of the world's oldest international peace federations. The organisation was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1910 for acting "as a link be ...
in recognition of their work opposing
nuclear weapons A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...
development in
South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
. Praful Bidwai was a fellow of the
Transnational Institute The Transnational Institute (TNI), is an international non-profit research and advocacy think tank that was founded in 1974, Amsterdam, Netherlands. According to their website, the organization promotes a "... just, democratic and sustainable wor ...
.


Partial bibliography


Books

* "An India That Can Say Yes: A Climate-Responsible Development Agenda for Copenhagen and Beyond" (Heinrich Boell Foundation, New Delhi, 2009) * ''South Asia on a Short Fuse. Nuclear Politics and the Future of Global Disarmament'', with Achin Vanaik (Oxford UP, 1999), published in the United States as ''New Nukes. India, Pakistan and Global Nuclear Disarmament'' (
Interlink Publishing Interlink Publishing is an independent publishing house, founded in 1987 and based in Northampton, Massachusetts, USA. , it published an average of 90 books a year and had 800 titles in print. Overview The company specializes in publishing in the ...
: USA, 1999) * ''Testing Times. The Global Stake in a Nuclear Test Ban'', with Achin Vanaik (Dag Hammerskjöld Foundation: Uppsala, 1996) * ''Religion, Religiosity and Communalism'', with
Harbans Mukhia Harbans Mukhia (born 1939) is an Indian historian whose principal area of study is medieval India. Biography He received his Bachelors in Arts (BA) in history in 1958 from Kirori Mal College, Delhi University and then earned his doctorate ...
and Achin Vanaik (South Asia Books, 1996) * ''India Under Siege. Challenges Within and Without'', with
Muchkund Dubey Prof. Muchkund Dubey is a Former Ambassador and Former Indian Foreign Secretary, the administrative head of the Indian Foreign Service, Government of India. Career He is also President of Council for Social Development (CSI), and Chairman ...
, Anuradha Chenoy and Arun Ghosh (South Asia Books, 1995)


Selected articles

* "Atoms for Peace: A Failed Promise" In: Survey of the Environment '99, The Hindu, 1999 * "India's Nuclear Daze. The Domestic Politics of Nuclearization" (With Achin Vanaik) In: Testing the Limits, TNI/IPS Amsterdam/Washington, August 1998 * "Nuclear India: A Short History" In: Out of Nuclear Darkness. The Indian Case for Disarmament, MIND (Movement in India for Nuclear Disarmament), New Delhi, 1998 * "Communalism and the Democratic Process in India" (With Achin Vanaik) In: Jochen Hippler (eds). The Democratisation of Disempowerment TNI/Pluto Press, 1995 * "India and Pakistan" (With Achin Vanaik) In: Security with Nuclear Weapons New York, Oxford University Press, 1991


References


External links


Biographical notes
from the
Transnational Institute The Transnational Institute (TNI), is an international non-profit research and advocacy think tank that was founded in 1974, Amsterdam, Netherlands. According to their website, the organization promotes a "... just, democratic and sustainable wor ...

Archive of articles
from rediff.com
IPS
Praful Bidwai's contributions to the news agency Inter Press Service {{DEFAULTSORT:Bidwai, Praful Indian male journalists 1949 births Indian anti-war activists Indian anti–nuclear weapons activists Indian opinion journalists Indian activist journalists 2015 deaths 20th-century Indian journalists Journalists from Maharashtra Activists from Maharashtra