Why India’s expert panel rejected Pfizer plea for emergency use nod to its Covid vaccine
The Narendra Modi government’s expert panel rejected drugmaker Pfizer’s application seeking emergency nod for its Covid-19 vaccine after the company insisted on waiver of clinical trial in India despite some side-effects being reported in various countries, Himani Chandna reports.
The Technology Information Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) of the Department of Science & Technology has created a portal called the Shramik Shakti Manch that will connect labourers to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in their native places via WhatsApp. The idea took shape during the Covid pandemic, reports Mohana Basu.
Why resumption of Mumbai local trains marks return to normal for city, not just its commute
For Mumbai, the local train system is not just a mass transportation system. It is the spine of an entire economy revolving around it, an integral part of the city’s social fabric, and a place where the best and the worst of Mumbai is on display. Which is why the city only began to feel more like itself after the Maharashtra government allowed the general population to board local trains from 1 February, reports Manasi Phadke.
Narendra Modi is ruling India as if it was another state and he is still a chief minister
What has been happening in several Indian states for long has now reached Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and now Home Minister Amit Shah have brought to the capital what they know best — the tried-and-tested best-practices from the ‘CM model of governance’, writes Rama Lakshmi.
Modi is right: Government deserves no credit for bringing Covid under control in India
If Covid has come under control in India, with daily deaths now in double digits, it is not because the government was able to control the pandemic. It is at best a mix of herd immunity and good luck, writes Shivam Vij.
Imran Khan’s Pakistan wants to call. But Modi’s status is, ‘Can’t talk, WhatsApp only’
Since 2008, there has been no bilateral dialogue between India and Pakistan. And after the 2015 Narendra Modi and Nawaz Sharif surprise meeting in Lahore, leaders haven’t met at all. But even if love isn’t in the air, at least peace is, writes Naila Inayat.
Economic ideology is the new binary in Indian politics as Modi swerves Right & Rahul Left
Along with farm laws, Modi govt has passed labour reforms & promised to privatise major companies. This has led to an economic Right-Left divide, and that’s a good thing, writes Shekhar Gupta in this week’s National Interest.