As the death toll in the country from coronavirus jumped by a record 445 to 13,699, the Centre maintained that the number of infections per lakh population was among the lowest in the world. The new cases surged by over 10,000 for the 11th day in a row and rose by 14,821 to take the total to 4,25,282, according to health ministry data.
India also comes seventh among the biggest losers of happiness in the last one year.
Legendary Martina Navratilova showed glimpses of her past with her super-fit partner Leander Paes but it was the duo of Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi who prevailed 7-5, 7-5 to win the Kolkata leg of the Tennis Masters, a prelude to the IPTL.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday.
Can we make high speed 4G Internet available at 10 cents per GB, and make all voice calls free of cost -- that too in a large and diverse country like India? Can we make high-quality but simple breast cancer screening available to every woman, that too at the extremely affordable cost of $1 per scan? Can we make a portable, high-tech ECG machine which can provide reports immediately and that too at the cost of 8 cents a test? Can we make an eye imaging device that is portable, non-invasive and costs 3 times less that conventional devices? Can we make a robust test for mosquito-borne dengue, which can detect the disease on day 1, and that too at the cost of $2 per test? Amazingly, says Dr R A Mashelkar, the eminent scientist, all this has been achieved in India, not only by using technological innovation but also non-technological innovation.
Farm loan waivers should not be regarded as expenditure but as incentive and investment, argues B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant.
'there is absolutely no question that the Hinduism of the mob-lynchers, the people who have actually gone and killed others because of what they are eating or how they are worshipping or the faith they belong to or what they're doing professionally, those are, to my mind, not Hindus at all.' 'Hinduism needs to be reclaimed for the Hindus who are not bigots.'
Young, raw energy from India's engineering colleges on display!
Vaihayasi Pande Daniel discovers Ross Island where the clock can never be turned back.
The body of former President APJ Abdul Kalam, who died in Shillong on Monday evening, was carried to Delhi early Tuesday morning by a special aircraft from Guwahati.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday disagreed with those in the Congress who were dismissive of the challenge posed by Narendra Modi but asserted that the party would approach the 2014 Lok Sabha polls with self-confidence, irrespective of the results of the just concluded elections in five states.
Muslims constitute 20% of UP's electorate. Currently, Muslim voters are divided between Akhilesh's SP and Mayawati's BSP. What will tilt the balance? Can Muslims back the winning party? Mohammad Sajjad explains the mysteries of UP's Muslim politics.
Modi's Vietnam visit is timely and crucial for several reasons. First, Vietnam lies at the heart of India's vision for Southeast Asia as also its 'Act East' policy. India also wants to boost its defence exports to friendly countries. And it is looking to increase trade between the two countries will now is only $7.83 billion, says Dr Rahul Mishra.
Staff working at the Rashtrapati Bhavan recount how the 11th president lived a simple lifestyle and always cared for them.
'My heart weeps for Vajpayee, the prince among poets, the king among politicians and the emperor among statesmen,' says Sudhir Bisht.
In a stunning development in Indian football, two-time champions Churchill Brothers were thrown out of the I-League along with three other teams for failing to fulfil the AIFF's club licensing criteria.
Three years after the horrific massacre of Sikh worshippers at the Oak Creek, Wisconsin, gurdwara by a gunman with ties to supremacist organisations, a federal system to help track hate crimes against Sikhs, Hindu, Arab American communities has been formalised.
Accusing the Congress of putting its interests above the country's, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday tore into the Oppposition, saying unlike earlier when opposition parties stalled Parliament against scams, Congress- led parties are now doing so against government's steps to curb black money and corruption.
Kalam, who received seveeral prestigious awards including Bharat Ratna, played a crucial role when India tested its nuclear weapons at Pokhran in 1998 when the Vajpayee government was in power.
'In all likelihood, the Congress will fall short in Gujarat.' 'The Modi-Amit A Shah duo will hold on to the state for the BJP,' predicts Sudhir Bisht.
For India to endorse Nepal's Buddhist conference will be like sipping from a poisoned chalice, warns former RA&W official Jayadeva Ranade.
Unless the judges factor in the ungovernability of technologies and their beneficial owners, present and future Presidents, prime ministers, judges, legislators and officials handling sensitive assignments may become redundant with reference to their age-old roles for securing 'national resources and assets', warns Dr Gopal Krishna.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday.
Skipper Virat Kohli batted like a man possessed, slamming an unbeaten 151 in company of another centurion Cheteshwar Pujara to steer India to a commendable 317 for four against England on Day 1 of the second Test in Visakhapatnam.
'Communalism and communal riots happened in India only during and due to colonialism. Pre-colonial India didn't have this problem of communal conflicts and religious strife.'
'I stand by what I said. It is understandable that Rushdie got angry and called me names. But it also means it hurt him because there was some truth in what I said.'
'Pluralism is a fundamental fact of Indian life,' Colonel Anil A Athale (retd) tells members of the US Congress. 'Indians created a secular/plural State because that is what the majority believes in and not the other way round.'
Rediff.com gives you a look at newbies in the Council of Ministers
With fresh enrollments crossing 100,000 mark, the total number of Indian students studying in the US reported a sharp increase this year.
