Bureaucracy: Modi moves to dismantle demonic relic of Raj
By Amit Kapoor As we get to celebrate 67 years as a Republic on January 26 and 70 years as an independent nation in a few months, it is time we reflect upon the quagmire…
Commentary
Modi/Trump, Gandhi/Clinton electoral dramas have parallel scripts
By Arul Louis When the American Presidential election campaign got underway in 2015, it was unfolding as a 2008 Bangladesh-style poll, a battle of the begums, the dynastic war of Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia,…
Indian politicians: a perceptive but askance view from the mofussil
By Vikas Datta The Indian Republic will, this week, turn 67. But for most of its people, most hopes of its founding fathers have remained hopes only. In a polity based on ‘Vox populi, vox…
As Maharashtra makes big mining push, tribals push back
By Poorvi Kulkarni Etapalli and Bhamragad talukas, Gadchiroli (Maharashtra): Over two nights in early January, Madia Gond tribals — or Adivasis, as they prefer to be called — of southeastern Maharashtra gather every year in…
Petrol prices cross 2013 peaks, but political opposition missing
By Arvind Padmanabhan New Delhi, Jan 21 (IANS) In February 2013, opposition parties, notably the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), took to the streets in protest as the price of petrol in the national capital spiralled…
Growing India-Vietnam strategic ties will mean a more stable Indo-Pacific
By Major General P.K. Chakravorty (retd) Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Vietnam on September 2-3, 2016. The visit was the first by an Indian Prime Minister after 15 years. Twelve agreements were signed during…
SP-Congress will give BJP a run for its money in UP
By Amulya Ganguli Any satisfaction which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) felt over the internal strife in the Samajwadi Party (SP) must have been diluted to a considerable extent by the truce, albeit an uneasy…
BIMARU states: Little progress in 2 years, learning crisis for millions of children
By Prachi Salve and Alison Saldanha In 2016, some learning outcomes for 111 million school-age students between ages six and 15 remained mostly unchanged in BIMARU states (Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh), when…
Making a case for Jallikattu
By Salim David The tradition of Jallikattu is many thousands of years old in Tamil Nadu. The recent ban on this festive event has the entire state up in arms. What typically happens during Jallikattu…
Stem cell treatment could be a proven therapy for diabetes, autism
By Chirayu Padhiar Stem cell therapy has turned out to be a ray of hope for most patients who are trying to find a cure for incurable diseases. Researchers and experts believe India has been…
If IITs had more Dalit professors, would Aniket Ambhore be alive?
By Charu Bahri In March 2012, Sanjay and Sunita Ambhore, parents of Aniket Ambhore, 19, a first-year electrical engineering student at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B), received a letter informing them that their…
‘I’m with Zaira’: Support pours in for Kashmiri ‘Dangal’ starlet
New Delhi, Jan 17 (IANS) “I am with Zaira,”, one of the top trending hashtags, took the virtual world by storm on Tuesday after Dangal starlet Zaira Waseem, a 16-year-old Kashmiri, was trolled by a…
Trump shadow on India-US-Australia trilateral relations?
By Rekha Bhattacharjee With Donald Trump set to be inaugurated as the 45th President of the United States on January 20, will his presidency alter India-US-Australia trilateral relations? It is an indisputable fact that the…
Creativity will drive India’s prosperity: Is anyone listening?
By Amit Kapoor A special “Nobel Series” session was a notable addition at the latest Vibrant Gujarat Summit (January 9-12). Nine laureates were invited to share their thoughts about the challenges of humankind and what…
#Notebandi frontlines: Small stores struggle to survive, but many support Modi
By Alison Saldanha Mumbai: There are about 12 million to 14 million kirana shops — family-run corner-shops/mom-and-pop or convenience stores selling groceries and other products — across India (according to a 2015 report by PricewaterhouseCoopers,…
Coming Trump world order: Western intelligence at sixes and sevens
By Saeed Naqvi Pardon my naivet?, but I cannot for the life of me comprehend why the entire US establishment, with the intelligence community in the vanguard, is in convulsions about the alleged Russian efforts…
Punjab polls: Will ‘Rahu kaal’ end for Congress?
By Amulya Ganguli Although two opinion polls have given different findings about which party will be the winner in Punjab, conventional wisdom is that the ruling Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) combine will have a…
After #Notebandi, banks flush with money, but companies in no shape to borrow
By Prathamesh Mulye “Demonetisation has made banks flush with funds, and they will lend it to productive sectors.” – Power Minister Piyush Goyal, November 26, 2016. It won’t be quite as easy as Goyal said….
270 days after Bihar liquor ban, major crimes up 13%
By Devanik Saha During a recent visit to Bihar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for his alcohol ban policy. He said: “I greet Nitish Kumar from the core of my heart…
Alarming drop in reading skills in Madhya Pradesh
By Khushboo Balani Reading and some math skills of Madhya Pradesh students are among India’s lowest, the transition rate to higher classes is lower than the national average, a majority of classrooms are shared by…