Neither ‘udta’ nor ‘padhta’ Punjab. Question is how India’s no. 1 state in 2003 fell to 13
Punjab, once India’s richest state, has slipped and fallen behind. MSP and subsidies should continue, but it needs to rediscover its entrepreneurial impulse.
How retrospective restraint prevents Pranab Mukherjee from saying he was a winner or loser
‘The Presidential Years’ avoids real political issues, refuses to go into details, hides a lot more than it tells, and is therefore a big let-down.
In Modi’s AMU pitch to Muslims, retreat from party politics hurting foreign policy interests
Modi’s AMU address after Shah’s CAA remarks suggests govt has realised downside — for international relations, and internal security — of pushing too hard on politics of Muslim exclusion.
Modi is popular, BJP keeps winning, but India’s indicators & global rankings are alarming
Govt’s own NFHS, as well as many global non-Left institutions’ rankings have shown a drop in India’s development indicators. This will begin to hurt soon.
Fallacy of too much democracy: No economic freedoms can thrive without political freedoms
We hold China in awe because it has a per capita GDP five times India’s. But the history of economic and democratic growth coincides almost everywhere else.
Thatcher or Anna moment? Why Modi’s choice on farmers’ protest will shape future politics
Modi can retreat like Manmohan Singh did under pressure from the Anna Hazare movement, or push farm reforms in Margaret Thatcher's style.
Shambles over farmers’ protest shows Modi-Shah BJP needs a Punjab tutorial
Modi-Shah BJP has tended to patronise Punjab & Sikhs, instead of being a respectful partner. Its strategy to tackle protests farm laws crisis has given Sikhs the good fight they love.
What the amazing rise & sudden death of a ‘Holy Warrior’ tell us about Islam & politics in Pakistan
Khadim Hussain Rizvi was the face of Pakistan’s radical Islamist politics. His sudden death, however, will not end the mass appeal of religious fundamentalism.
How Modi has made a ‘Nehruvian’ half-blunder on China & ignored investing in the military
Modi assumed the Chinese won’t be a military threat and risk their economic interests. He was only half-right — that there wouldn’t be a conventional war.
Trump may lose, but Trumpism has arrived in US – it’s more about populism, not performance
The triumph of Trumpism is the big takeaway from US election, not Biden’s probable victory. Rising wokeness is the fuel driving this populist demagogy.
DC to Delhi — 5 reasons why Biden admin changed its mind on helping Covid-struck India
From ‘America first’, the Biden administration took a quick U-turn to offering support to India in its time of Covid crisis. But why the belated reply?
Maruti Suzuki’s net profit falls as second Covid wave hits demand
Net income fell 9.3% to Rs 11.7 billion in the three months ended March 31, Maruti Suzuki said in a statement; revenue for the fourth quarter rose 32% year-on-year to Rs 240.2 billion.
Defence
Army chief Naravane visits eastern Ladakh, Siachen, reviews operational preparedness
Gen Naravane was accompanied by Lt Gen Y.K. Joshi, Army Commander of the Northern Command, and Lt Gen P.G.K. Menon, General Officer Commanding of the Leh-based Fire and Fury Corps.
As Modi govt faces up to Covid disaster, BJP learns a tough truth — the virus doesn’t vote
Till February this year, Narendra Modi and the BJP were congratulating themselves on having avoided the tsunami of Covid. Now India is a hare in headlights.