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Srinagar, Nov: Maintaining their centuries-old tryst with Kashmir, migratory birds have started arriving here from far off lands to spend the winter months in the relatively less harsh cold of the Valley. These hardy souls fly in from Siberia and China, as also the Philippines, Eastern Europe and Japan.
New Delhi, Sep 9: Actor-environmentalist Dia Mirza, who could soon pen a new book on the "unsung" foot soldiers of conservation in India, said here that her literary tastes have evolved over the past years.
Questioning the need for the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) when a larger body with more or the less same membership exists is not relevant.
In a tweet Congress President Rahul Gandhi came out in support of the 'Urban Naxals’ arrested following near simultaneous raids throughout the country. He lashed out at the government, saying the only non-government outfit allowed to operate was the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. “Welcome to the new India,” the Congress President said.
The Punjab government’s decision to amend the law on sacrilege, giving it wider scope and making it more stringent, is a retrograde move. The changes proposed by Captain Amarinder Singh’s Congress government are not intended to “preserve religious harmony in the state’’, as claimed by it, but to pander to base religious sentiments and to make political capital out of it.
The BJP's high-profile immersion of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's ashes in rivers has not impressed everyone in Uttar Pradesh. While many feel that the "tamasha" would not have earned the approval of the late leader himself, a small section in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) feels that the event was commensurate with the stature of Vajpayee, who died on August 16.
The CBI’s petition in the Supreme Court against the acquittal of Rajesh and Nupur Talwar in the 2008 Aarushi murder case is wrong and is another reminder of the gross mishandling of the investigation of the case. The court has issued notice to the Talwars, and if the case is re-opened, it will only mean continued injustice and harassment of the parents.
The fact that NRIs will now also be able to cast their vote through self-appointed proxies as per a recent amendment to “The Representation of People’s Act” is a welcome move. Earlier, NRIs had to travel back to their respective constituencies to cast their vote which can now be done through the Indian Power of Attorney holder.
The rupee’s recent slide gave politicians a chance to exhibit their economic illiteracy. As the currency slipped below Rs 70 to the US dollar, Congress president Rahul Gandhi tweeted:“The Indian rupee just gave the Supreme Leader a vote of No-confidence, crashing to a historic low. Listen to the Supreme Leader's master class on economics in this video, where he explains why the rupee is tanking.
“Are you not tired of listening to this old story?” asked the 90-year-old woman I had travelled from Delhi to Chandigarh to meet. “I’ve been talking for hours.” Her story goes back to November 1947, when she was 19 years old and nine months pregnant. She was fleeing the ethnic cleansing of Hindus and Sikhs in Mirpur, in what is today the contested territory of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji after remaining in public life for decades left for his final journey on August 16. He was 93.It is not easy for any politician to remain untainted after serving his party and government for so long. Vajpayee not only managed to do that, but also ensured he created a niche for himself in a party that is known for being not so inclusive in nature.
Most Indian cities, especially the metros, are in a state of terminal decline. The four parameters set by Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry — governance, social institutions, economic and physical infrastructure — to determine the Ease of Living Index seemed grossly inadequate in assessing the complex crises that have afflicted sprawling urban settlements.
India will celebrate its 72nd Independence Day on August 15. Every year on 15th August the country celebrates freedom from the British rule. As we celebrate independence, we also celebrate the rich Indian culture and tradition. On Independence Day people exchange sweets, greet each other and hoist the tricolour.
As per the Census 2011, India added 180 million to its population in the decade following 2001 to reach a total population figure of 1.21 billion. At a decadal growth rate of 17 per cent, the country’s population is expected to surpass China’s 1.3 billion by 2024. At the same time, the Indian landmass is only a third of the Chinese landmass by area.
New Delhi, Aug 13: There is no denying the fact that Indian food is as vast as its culture and lifestyle. The taste buds of Indians span beyond their regions as every part has its own specialty. So why not try some of the famous delicacies from different regions this Independence Day.
The central government's move to drop the plan to create a single regulator for higher education, which was to be named Higher Education Evaluation and Regulation Authority (HEERA), in place of the UGC (University Grants Commission) and the AICTE (All-India Council for Technical Education) is not a sign of its commitment to improve the quality of higher education.
Rajnath, 72, a retired school headmaster, continues to live in his ancestral home in north Kashmir's Manigam village. The turmoil of the 1990s saw most members of his minority Kashmiri Pandit community leave the village, but Rajnath stayed back in the village he was born in, with his wife and daughter.
The Supreme Court has many times expressed displeasure over the failure of the Centre and the UP government to preserve and protect the Taj Mahal. After again pulling up both, the court recently named three officials as nodal officers in charge of the upkeep and maintenance of the monument which has badly suffered from environmental pollution.
Once people were hooked to jokes, propagandists took over to peddle fake news and hatred. When popular social media network platforms entered our lives, they became a novel and entertaining way of keeping in touch with friends and family. It was a dramatic and monumental change. It marked a major milestone in the way communication evolved.
A confident Prime Minister of a new government delivered a 40-minute speech on September 25, 2014. At the core of his speech was the symbol of a mechanical lion. This is how PM Modi had launched his ‘Make in India’ program. The prime minister made sure that this program was advertised heavily, both within and outside India. A vision was created.
Congress circles are abuzz with speculation that Sonia Gandhi, currently a Member of Parliament from Rae Bareli, might not seek re-election in the general elections, thus paving way for Priyanka Vadra. Sonia Gandhi retired from the position of Congress president in December 2017, leading to Rahul Gandhi’s accession to the top position.
The broad contours of what is going to be a long and bitter campaign before the parliamentary election next year are already in sight. Rival politicians have begun to prepare ground for the vital State elections before the crucial Lok Sabha poll next year. The Prime Minister’s itinerary now increasingly includes official events and public rallies in the States headed for the polls.
The Supreme Court’s support for live telecast of court proceedings is welcome, and the first court channel may be set up and launched soon. The Central government has proposed a channel similar to the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha channels, with streaming of the court of the Chief Justice of India on an experimental basis first and then extending it to other courts.
The Supreme Court’s directive on appointment of Director General of Police in the states is intended to reduce the scope for personal and political favouritism in the selection of the top police officer. The court has barred the appointment of ‘acting’ DGPs “as there is no concept of an acting DGP.” It has laid down a selection procedure. It has given a role to the UPSC in the appointment.
The Supreme Court has pulled up the central government and eight state governments for their laxity in appointing information commissioners. The court has issued notices to them on the basis of a petition filed by Right to Information (RTI) activists seeking a directive by the court to appoint the commissioners immediately.
Two union ministers -- minister of state for civil aviation Jayant Sinha and minister of state for small and medium enterprises Giriraj Singh -- have sent out a dangerous message of support for communal crimes and murder with their recent actions.
The Modi government has announced a hike in the minimum support prices (MSP) of kharif crops, ranging from 3.7 per cent for urad to 52.5 per cent for ragi. It is as much as 50 per cent for paddy, which is the main crop. Leaders of the government and the BJP have taken credit for the decision, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi describing it as historic.
What do we do with social media which instead of being a force for good has very often tended to become a medium for evil, pure evil? The lynching of five people in Dhule district of Maharashtra has come on the back of many such incidents of mob violence in several parts of the country.
The Centre’s move to drastically increase the minimum support price for kharif crops is unlikely to solve the crisis of Indian agriculture. Yet, coming as it does ahead of crucial State and later parliamentary polls, it might improve the electoral prospects of the ruling party. Last week, the prime minister announced that the government will increase the MSP of the kharif crops by at least 1.
Ghastly incidents of lynching are being reported from different parts of the country and over multiple issues. They have assumed the dimensions of a social epidemic. The incidents have become more frequent, and they happen in villages and cities and in places as far apart as Tripura and Maharashtra.
For the first four years of his term, the rupee was stable, global oil prices moderate, foreign funds poured into debt and equity markets and investment projects, and inflation was more or less under control while the twin deficits were cause of not much concern. No longer, though.
India has responded with pricklishness to the findings of a Thomson Reuters survey, which described India to be “the most dangerous place for women.” Both Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi and the chairperson of the National Commission for Women swiftly rejected the survey’s findings and have picked holes in its methodology and subjectivity.
We often hear that India is a country of jugaad. There is no English equivalent of the word. Economists have hailed our spirit of jugaad and corporate India has deemed it as our secret weapon. They have celebrated it and tried to explain it to the world. They have tried to equate it with frugal innovation and sought to make the most of the branding exercise.
The MoD letter on May 28 clearly indicated her refusal to trust her own generals, who may be capable of leading troops in war, countering security threats and taking life/death decisions in deciding closure of roads. The letter stated that all decisions on closure of roads would be done by the MoD.
The repeated refusal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to meet Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and delegations led by him is wrong and improper and would amount to a dereliction of the responsibilities that go with his office. The rejection of the chief minister’s requests for meeting has been widely noticed and has appeared as deliberate and politically motivated.
Indian fugitive Nirav Modi has been staying in London since early this year. Kiran Rijiju, India’s Minister of State for Home, has confirmed that Baroness Williams, the British Minister for countering extremism, had assured him that the British government would fully cooperate with India’s efforts to extradite Nirav Modi. But those are mere assurances.
Thanks to the rise of China as a military and economic power, several nations in India’s periphery and beyond have had to revisit their old and established external relations. With China unhesitatingly, in some cases, brazenly exploiting both its superior economic and military clout, smaller nations have had difficulty resisting its pressures.
One area where the prime minister has acquitted himself rather well is foreign affairs. Without any experience of diplomacy, he seems to have taken to it like a duck to water, revealing consummate skills in engaging foreign dignitaries from all continents and of all persuasions.
Unlike the MoU of 2003 on a ceasefire, astride the LoC, sought by Pakistan, the current initiative last week once again was taken by Pakistan's DGMO. This time by Major General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, whose framed picture with a thumbnail sketch is located in his senior counterpart Lt. Gen. Anil Chauhan's office.
Countries should neither punch above nor below their weight. Staying within the weight class requires prior determination and understanding of it. India under Narendra Modi shows no evidence that it has made the necessary determination or even understands the concept of weight class.
Political developments in Karnataka have once again brought the role of the Governor under scrutiny. Appointed by the President after being selected by the Union government of the day, the office of the Governor has consistently been among the most controversial constitutional authorities.
The Reserve Bank of India is to decide on the country's interests rates when it reviews the monetary policy Wednesday. Given the rising inflation, depreciating rupee and volatile macroeconomic situation, industry as well as the Union government would hope the central bank remains patient and let at least two more months pass before increasing rates.
Srinagar: After Manan Wani, a research scholar at the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), and Junaid Sehrai, a master’s degree holder in business administration, joined ranks of the armed rebels this year, the militancy graph in the Kashmir Valley is witnessing an upward trend.
The belated and half-baked attempt to disinvest in Air India has suffered a miserable failure. Not a single party showed interest in buying the old and aging white elephant. With the tender terms tweaked in such a manner that whatever little interest there might have been in acquiring control of the public carrier, it was made further difficult for prospective parties.
Though by-elections do not generally give an indication of the ruling political mood at the state or national levels, the results of a string of by-elections held across the country this week have pointed to a national trend, and that is against the BJP.It won only one out of the four Lok Sabha seats and again only one out of the 11 Assembly seats for which elections were held.
On February 21, 2016, three men from the Indian Army’s elite Special Forces lost their lives while trying to evict two terrorists from Pampores Entrepreneurship Development Institute in the Kashmir Valley. The deaths of Captain Pawan Kumar, Captain Tushar Mahajan and Lance Naik Om Prakash raised several questions on the conduct of such operations.
The Central Government’s decision to set up an elaborate machinery to collect data from social media platforms and regional media and to monitor their working and content is another dubious move to interfere with citizens’ and press freedoms.
New Delhi, May 31: Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan has come on board to front a campaign to address the issues of malnutrition, stunting and infant mortality.GSK Consumer Healthcare has launched Horlicks Mission Poshan, which will focus on first thousand days of a child's life which are critical for cognitive development, physical growth and immunity.
A parliamentary committee looking into India’s military preparedness, defence production and requirements has dealt the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) a rap on its knuckles for its underwhelming performance.The DRDO has not met expectations, the parliamentary panel has observed, calling for a “major overhaul” of the organisation.