With the union cabinet having accorded its approval to the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission, about one crore government employees and pensioners will get a 2.5-time hike in basic pay and pensions, which will cost the state exchequer annually Rs 1.02 lakh crore. The once-in-a-dec
Veteran Congress leader Sheila Dikshit, during her three consecutive terms as Delhi chief minister, often blamed the multiplicity of authorities in the national capital as an obstacle to development. She too often demanded full statehood for Delhi. Talking
Asha Devi Mornings in my village are not very pleasant. This is despite the fact that I live in a lush green, idy
Using IT in forensic science is no longer restricted to the realm of sci-fi. It can help the government and agencies in cracking cases like those arising from the Panama Papers, rising NPAs of banks and money laundering. In an interaction with Pratap Vikram Singh, Petrus Marais of KPMG talks about the need of forensics with the increasing focus on cyber security.
Girija Devi is one of the finest classical and folk vocalists in the country. Born and brought up in Varanasi, she took forward the legacy of Benaras gharana and mastered semi-classical forms of music like thumri, kajri and tappa. She received Padma Vibhushan earlier this year. At 87, the Queen of Thumri as she is fondly called, shares her thoughts with Swati Chandra on the
The very thought of meeting the genial father-figure of many a Bollywood flick and one of the better known theatre personalities of India, MK Raina, was exciting. We met over lunch in Delhi’s Le Meridien on a hot summer afternoon. “I have no idea of what you are going to speak to me about,” Raina said, as he kick-started the conversation bypassing all formalities of a first-ti
As the new government in Tamil Nadu completes its first month, it has taken a first step towards fulfilling one of its key election promises: prohibition. But the way it is moving forward, activists and civil society are not very confident of its efficacy. On Sunday, the government closed down 500 liquor outlets – following chief minister J Jayalalithaa’
Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy, general secretary of the Communist Party of India (CPI), is confident about the revival of the Left. Reddy, who has been a member of Lok Sabha twice, believes that reunification of the Left parties can help consolidate the communist movement. Talking to Pankaj Srivastava, Reddy discusses the problems and prospects of the Indian Left.
These days K Babu, the controversial excise minister in the previous United Democratic Front government in Kerala headed by Oommen Chandy, cannot control his anger and frustration. Reason? He became the fall guy for supporting liquor ban in the state as voters rejected him and he lost his Thrippunithura seat, which had sent him to the house for four consecutive terms. “I a
Harish Rawat has seen more ups and downs in two months than many see in decades. He is back in power in Uttarakhand, but facing a CBI inquiry over the alleged horse-trading sting. Ahead of his CBI quizzing on June 7, Rawat found time to answer a few questions from Aasha Khosa. Edited excerpts: How do you look back at the two months of political developments in Ut
A drop of liquor is equivalent to a thousand teardrops (Oru tulli madyam, ayiram tulli kannuneer), says an advertisement of the excise department of Kerala. Vishu smells of liquor as he gets up and receives this journalist into his two-room house in Ambalapuram, a typical urbanised panchayat in Thrissur. It is 7 pm and the 60-year-old man, a carpente
Bihar’s liquor ban was spearheaded by excise minister Abdul Jalil Mastan. The six-time Congress MLA talks about the state’s plans to overcome the challenges in implementing this difficult move – from providing alternative employment opportunities to opening de-addiction centres. What made you enact a law which completely banned liq
There was an unprecedented disaster in 2013. Massive amount of torrential rainfall took place which led to flash floods near every single river of the state of Uttarakhand. From Yamuna, Bhagirathi, Mandakini, Alaknanda, Dhauliganga, Kali nadi – none of the rivers were spared. The massive flash floods and landslides claimed thousands of lives and their livelihoods. Till date, people a
The hope of relative safety of a religious majority as well as the fear of maiming and mutilation following partition forced mass exodus from either sides of the new border. The 1951 census of Pakistan identified the number of displaced persons in Pakistan at 7,226,600, presumably all Muslims who had entered Pakistan from India. Similarly, the 1951 census of India enumerated 7,295,870 displaced
Dr Sri Vatsa Sehra cracked the civil services examinations, considered one of the world’s toughest, and did the unthinkable by deciding against joining the much sought after Indian Administrative Service (IAS). Instead, the doctor from AIIMS told Pankaj Kumar that he opted for the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) as it provides an amazing opportunity not just to administe
The UPA government’s big initiative in education was the Right to Education (RTE) Act. The NDA government’s big initiative promises to be the new education policy. A five-member committee, headed by former cabinet secretary TSR Subramanian, was set up last year to draft the policy. The committee had submitted its report on May 27. In early June, however, the matter became conten
Dealing with ammunition is one of the most lethal tasks in the army. It is hardly realised that ammunition is more unpredictable than the enemy, and soldiers deal with it on a regular basis. On May 31, an accident at the central ammunition depot (CAD) in Pulgaon, near Nagpur in Maharashtra, saw the loss of 19 lives, including those of firefighters and two officers.
Glittering zari sarees bring to mind wedding and other festive occasions. But now when I look at a beautiful glittering saree, I can see the lost childhood of so many children embroidered in it. Rescue work can be tough and emotionally draining and I can never forget the scary experience of rescuing bonded children from the dark and dingy saree making factories in Jaipur City, t
They live as whole families in small straw huts they made with their bare hands, on a patch of land miles away from the nearest town. It looks desolate. But it is, they tell me, “paradise”. Because before they came here, they had been forcibly held as bonded labourers by a plantation master. It is 2016, India is a global power, and I am talking to people who have escaped what is eff
The news from war-ravaged Afghanistan is not encouraging: a resurgent Taliban, an increasing Islamic State footprint, a fractious government and a weak security force. This year has already seen the Indian consulate in Jalalabad being targeted by a suicide attack. Meanwhile, Afghanistan is very much on top of India’s diplomatic engagements. Economic cooperation with Iran and A
