Many in India subscribe to the idea of unity in diversity for India. Unity presupposes reciprocity among the segments. One may ask if the supposed unity in the Indian context merely exhibits some semblance of institutionalised order. However, the term unity enjoys official patronage and it is particularly upheld by those who are the stakeholders of the policy of united India free from the
When it comes to social sector indicators, Himachal Pradesh is one of the best performing states. However, that has not been a rewarding point for the hill state, says chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal. Talking to Trithesh Nandan in his Shimla office, the chief minister rues the rough deal the centre doles out to the state. Dhumal alleges that the UPA governmen
Amidst the verbal duels parliament witnessed on December 22 when the Lokpal Bill was tabled for discussion, the lone parliamentarian who stood out for his theatrics was Lalu Prasad, that irrepressible king of buffoonery. Lalu was busy stirring what he believes is `rustic charm` and `earthen wit` into the debate, launching a vitriolic broadside at social activist and Jan Lokpal crusader
Chief election commissioner Shahabuddin Yaqoob Quraishi is bang on the job. A day after announcing dates for elections in five states (Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur), he is dead serious about dealing with electoral challenges of all kinds, not excluding even the perceived ones. In a statement (during an interview with PTI) which just fell short of bordering
While some claim India is an emerging economic superpower, we still have a long way to go before achieving the kind of growth that goes beyond numbers, that translates into better lives for millions. Growth has been given priority over development, gross domestic product over gross national happiness. Take nutrition for example. The international food policy research institute (IFPRI), an inter
India has not done enough to improve its human rights record. A submission by the Working Group on Human Rights in India and the UN (WGHR), a national coalition of human rights organisations and independent experts says the records continue to be `disturbing`. Released this month, the report presents a bleak scenario of the actual state of human rights across India. The report talked ab
India has not done enough to improve its human rights record, so it continues to be ‘disturbing’ according to submission made by the Working Group on Human Rights in India and the UN (WGHR), a national coalition of human rights organisations and independent experts. Released this month, the report presents a very bleak scenario of the actual state of human rights across Indi
On November 22, I addressed my column in The Pioneer to self-regulation bodies in the media space. I argued that via Colors, a fairly respectable TV channel, pornstar Sunny Leone is being heavily cross-promoted across the internet, mobile applications and the social media space. I did name Press Council chief Markandey Katju and News Broadcasting Standards Authority chairman JS Verma. But I rea
The news of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il’s death has been received with much speculation with questions related to the nature of political transition in this isolated country, their future foreign policy and the inside situation. Most importantly, the international community is watching closely the nation’s nuclear policy with raised eyebrows asking, “Who controls the Nukes
India has earned the dubious distinction of being South Asia`s most uncharitable country in 2011, if one goes by the ranking in the Charities Aid Foundation`s World Giving Index. In the South Asia region, India is the worst performer with a global ranking of 91. In 2010, India ranked at 134. Pakistan, which was ranked at 142 last year, has made it to 34th position this year. Sri Lanka i
Assuming that the committee that selected PJ Thomas as chief vigilance commission would have included the chief justice of India (CJI) too, how would it have impacted the judicial review of the decision? The answer to this query lies in the domain of ambiguity. But there is no denying the fact that it would have added a rather complex dimension to the appointments of functionaries whose assignm
Terming India`s nutrition policy half-baked, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), says that the country can provide nutrition security to its population only by 2043. “Countries such as China, Thailand, and Brazil have taken bold actions to successfully accelerate reductions in undernutrition and are on track to reach the first millennium development goals (MD
If chief minister Mayawati’s plan to divide UP into four isn’t going anywhere she herself has to blame for it. She hardly had left the union home ministry with any choice other than sending back her proposal with multiple queries. Her rejoinder that the union government wants to keep the issue ‘pending’ by picking holes cuts no ice. To begin at the beginni
Justice Markandey Katju’s assertions, most of which I suppose are picked up by media these days, are too big for his petite table in the press council of India office. The ludicrousness of his statements augurs, if not demands, a bigger role for the man. This time he has demanded Bharat Ratna for Mirza Ghalib and Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. No, a Nobel demand for Shakespeare is not to be
Nothing, it seems, moves our elected government as political expediency. Note the alacrity with which the government moved to clear the food security bill and induct RLD leader Ajit Singh into the cabinet on Sunday in sharp contrast with its vacillation over the Lokpal bill. Amid reports of rotting stocks in the FCI godowns even while a large chunk of population faced starvation,
The action research on exploring market-based mediation for generating opportunities for knowledge and resource rich but economically disadvantaged people has generated several new alternatives. We realised that women groups from over 15 districts of Gujarat tried to commercialise their products and cooked traditional foods, they may not be able to compete well with the professionals or more ex
Washington: India witnessed illicit financial outflows of a staggering $128 billion during the 10 years to 2009, making it one of the biggest victims of illicit money among developing nations, says a report. The startling data come at a time when the country is aggressively exploring ways to fight the black money menace. The study by Washington-based research group Global F
People in India as well as elsewhere in the world had to live with rising prices of food and other essentials this year, but they can hope for a bit of relief next year, according to a report of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN-ESCAP). “Inflation is predicted to improve in 2012,” says the 2011 year-end update of UN-ESCAP. However, it also sa
It is not often that the words of a ‘literary icon nonpareil’ make sense to the man on the street. But Mani Shankar Aiyar’s comments on the parliament logjam over FDI in retail would make every person who wants his vote’s worth nod in agreement. For those who, out of sheer habit, had reached for their earplugs when Aiyar spoke last, here’s a rewind.
“Didi, are there rivers big like this in your country? Have you ever seen water like what is here below? I have, in Bihar. And in Bangladesh. Once the river got so big that the water came down and took houses and buffaloes away with it. All of a sudden, in the blink of an eye.” Alekh was whispering in the half-light. There was a small group of us who were huddling, unable to
