E-cigarette ban welcome; now aim for more tobacco control

In what it describes as a “major health and wellness initiative for the country”, the union cabinet has approved the promulgation of an ordinance to ban electronic cigarettes. The move, coming amid a debate over the ways to control tobacco use, should be welcomed, and it needs to be complemente

Ajay Singh is president’s press secretary

Ajay Kumar Singh, who has been the editorial director of Governance Now, has been appointed the press secretary of the president of India. The decision was made by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet headed by prime minister Narendra Modi on Monday. The appointment will be on contract

Amit Shah on India’s languages: What else he said

Home minister Amit Shah’s remark on the need for a single national language has rightly sparked a debate, but the headlines missed much in his speech about language, culture, and identity. Giving away Rajbhasha Gaurav Puraskar and Rajbhasha Kirti Puraskar awards on the occasion of Hin

On A Personal note with musician Apache Indian

Renowned British singer, songwriter and reggae DJ, Apache Indian (originally known as Steven Kapoor) shot to fame with his style of music which came to be known as bhangramuffin (also called bhangragga) – a mix of bhangra, reggaemuffin and traditional dance hall in the early 1990s. His style changed

Are the new traffic fines too steep?

Traffic fines: Find the sweet spot between penalty and self-goal

When close to five lakh people are killed in road accidents every year in India, road transport minister Nitin Gadkari should have been complimented on his not-so-populist move to impose higher fines for traffic violations. Instead, many people are unhappy and several states – mostly ruled by the BJP