Once war began with guns, artillery, and airstrikes, now it starts in silence. The tools of war are rapidly evolving, but the targets remain the same: a nation's resources, its people, its reputation.
India, like other countries, is facing this war, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi has signalled how seriously it views this when he addressed heads of mission on April 30.
He urged envoys to counter disinformation swiftly, to use his popularity and credibility, and promised to back them even if they sometimes erred.
The central challenge is speed: how quickly can India launch a counter-narrative, rebut fake news, expose fake memes, and confront attacks with facts?
China has formalised it by creating a dedicated information warfare division in the PLA. Information has become a battlefield where stories, memes, and manipulated data can trigger real-world consequences in politics, markets, and society.
India must bat on the front foot – or risk being bowled by more agile adversaries.
