New book by the IAS former Global Challenges Fellow Happymon Jacob

IAS congratulates its former Global Challenges Fellow Happymon Jacob on publishing his book 'Line of Fire. Ceasefire Violations and India-Pakistan Escalation Dynamics' (Oxford University Press, 2019). 

About the book

The India–Pakistan border in Jammu & Kashmir has witnessed repeated ceasefire violations (CFVs) over the past decade. As relations between India and Pakistan have deteriorated, CFVs have increased exponentially. It is imperative to gain a deeper understanding of these violations owing to their potential to not only cause a crisis but also escalate an ongoing one. Line on Fire, part of the Oxford International Relations in South Asia series, postulates that the incorrect diagnosis of the reasons behind CFVs has led to wrong policies being adopted by both India and Pakistan to deal with the recurrent violations. Using fresh empirical data, archival material and first-hand accounts, the volume attempts to understand the reason why CFVs continue to take place between India and Pakistan despite consistent efforts to reduce the tension between the two nations. In doing so, it recontextualizes and enriches the prevailing arguments in contemporary literature on escalation dynamics and unenduring ceasefire agreements between the two South Asian nuclear rivals.