A glance back at some of the important ups and down Indian Inc faced in 2018.
The environment ministry till May 2014 (still under UPA) ordered that cases like Vedanta's expansion plans need to consult people. But in December 2014, the NDA government reversed this position and in March 2015 the environment ministry extended Vedanta's environmental clearance till December 2018. This it did even while the question of the need for public hearing by projects in different kinds of industrial parks was being contested in the courts. This allowed the company to carry out construction.
'The fabric of democracy is fraying,' says T V R Shenoy. 'It is being attacked not just by terrorists in Kashmir or by zealots in the North-East, but is being ripped apart even in Allahabad, in the Hindi heartland.'
Sarpanch leaders are changing Rajasthan for the girl child, says Rashme Sehgal.
'Their vote bank has shifted to the BJP; the Congress is yet to realise it.'
The Moto G4 Plus is a worthy consideration under the Rs 15,000 budget, but users looking for a better build quality and more processing power will do well to opt for either Xiaomi Redmi Note 3, or even the ZUK Z1, says Himanshu Juneja
In some ways, Elon Musk's vision is even bolder and more transformative than that of Steve Jobs, says B S Prakash.
'The Kashmiri identity and its unique blend of Sufi Islam, its culture and language can best survive in a plural and secular India.' 'Neither independence nor merger with Pakistan can achieve that objective.' 'Peace will return to Kashmir only when Kashmiris realise this, else they will be part of the 1,000- year war,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Prime minister Manmohan Singh and several Congress leaders are against the formation of a separate state but are supporting the decision in the hope that it would win the party seats in the region. Renu Mittal reports
'Post Independence, it is for the first time that people have Rs 500 in their pocket, but the family is sleeping without food.'
In its bid to grab eyeballs in the regional space, Big Magic rebrands channel, sets up production unit in Patna
Fatherhood has changed Sergio Perez's life since the end of last season and the Mexican hopes the coming year in Formula One could be just as transformative on the track.
The Centre moved the Supreme Court on Saturday against the Gauhati high court verdict holding setting up of the Central Bureau of Investigation as unconstitutional.
China's economy is worse than it really is, but then these are emblematic of the baffling self-congratulatory mood that exists in India today.
Orissa learnt its lessons from previous cyclones, particularly the 1999 super cyclone, whereas Uttarakhand has failed to do so from any of the previous natural calamities that hit the state, says Dinesh C Sharma.
'I have tutored my family and myself to fight hunger,' the former agent for the disgraced Saradha chit fund says, his eyes welling up. 96 of the 107 cases referred to the Serious Fraud Investigation Office are based in Bengal!
India must first improve working condition, then it can concentrate on Make in India concept.
The navy's plan to build three Russian Talwar-class frigates has a less than wholesome odour.
'Saying that Snapdeal is not doing well is beyond premature. Suggesting that someone has won or lost is myopic.'
Whether India can create labour-intensive factory jobs instead that it needs to put millions to work in the next few years looks very unlikely.
India, with its demonstrated capabilities of undertaking low cost high value inter-planetary travel, offers great opportunities for NASA to work with.
Biometric authentication is based on the unscientific and questionable assumption that there are parts of human body that does not age, wither and decay with the passage of time.
It will be difficult for the AAP govt to maintain subsidies.
Noise levels began to climb and everyone else in the room stared agape as the fracas escalated, including the trio of accused at the back. Peter, Sanjeev and Indrani stood at the edge of their enclosure craning to see the spectacle.
A simple guide to the strange defensiveness of the government and its supporters, and how and why the arguments they're making are wrong.
Most forecasts do not have a track record of transparency and accuracy
The government has returned to talks with Pakistan, but can it withstand pressure from a jingoistic press and a rabidly nationalistic social media.
'They have the same pet peeves, the same ruse, the same beliefs, the same justifications.' 'All terrorists thrive on the premise that by perpetuating violence and bloodshed on innocents, they are justifying the injustices done to their community.'
'The ruling provides a Constitutional template, it draws boundaries, and there is this expectation that henceforth political parties will not make crude appeals to religion for electoral gains.'
'Modi is likely to make more announcements to win or retain popularity, and put himself at the centre of things even more than now,' says T N Ninan.
Mehbooba Mufti said that incidents like the ones at Handwara and Nathnusa are "unacceptable" and come as a major setback to the efforts of the state government in consolidating peace dividends in the state.
Tirole's insights show how real-world incentives are complicated, and contracts can be difficult to write and enforce.
'We don't know how much the Pay Commission outflow will be.'
There is a link between objectives and commitments.
'The cooperation of Yakub with the investigating agencies after he was picked up informally in Kathmandu and his role in persuading some other members of the family to come out of Pakistan and surrender constitute, in my view, a strong mitigating circumstance to be taken into consideration while considering whether the death penalty should be implemented,' B Raman had written in August 2007.
Saurabh Sarda who holds the All India Rank 3 for GATE 2014 in Computer Science Engineering shares his study secrets.
'A three generation US-Pakistan relationship is not likely to be snapped any time soon. All this presents an irritant to an India that wishes to concentrate on economic development,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'The execution has been 100 per cent faulty.' 'The scheme is also a stupid one, a real Tuglaq Darbar scheme.' 'This way of attacking black money is the most ineffective one.'
Let us hope that what happened in 1962 will never happened again, prays Claude Arpi
The Supreme Court bench comprising of Chief Justice T S Thakur and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud warned if there is a false statement given by BCCI office bearers on affidavit, then perjury or contempt proceedings could be initiated.
