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
That's all it takes to protect an institution -- just one person with no past and no greed for the future, says Shekhar Gupta.
"In the flux and transition of our times, the most critical need in this region is to uphold and strengthen the rules and norms that must define our collective behaviour," he said.
The facts remain cloaked in mystery, but the legend goes that Talpade had created a flying machine powered by mercury and solar energy, and based on ideas outlined in Vedic texts.
Showbiz shaadis that made headlines in 2014.
20 years ago this day, May 11, 1998, India conducted its second nuclear test at Pokharan in Rajasthan. In a fascinating interview on Rediff.com, K Subrahmanyam revealed how Indian PMs reacted to nuclear ambitions.
Known for his witty one-liners, Naidu said "after all, the culture of India is agriculture."
'Mulayam has by design cornered the people's attention back to the party and Akhilesh.' 'People were only talking of Modi and demonetisation, but now suddenly everybody is talking of Akhilesh and the SP.' 'My personal subjective impression is that the SP is neck and neck with the BJP.'
Even a doomsayer like Nouriel Roubini says India is in a sweet spot. If only we'd live up to the promise, says Shekhar Gupta.
'Bandaru Dattatreya shouldn't have blindly accepted what the ABVP told him.'
There was no breakthrough in US Secretary of State John F Kerry's India visit, but no breakdown either, says C Uday Bhaskar.
'What the government should do to create jobs is to help revive the MSME sector.' 'This sector gives employment to lakhs of people.' 'The MSME sector provides more employment than the big industries.' 'So, what should be done immediately is to revive the MSME sector.'
The resurgence that Congressmen feel is in fact more sentimental than substantive. The substantive reality is that the Congress is a party in terminal decline since 1989, says Shekhar Gupta.
Aseem Chhabra lists the elements that he loved and was pleasantly surprised by in the movies.
Internet-based systemic wisdom connects machines and people, and will drive next-gen enterprises, said Huawei's Yatish Nagavalli.
M Thambidurai, leader of the All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhagam in Parliament, was unanimously elected as Lok Sabha's deputy speaker on Wednesday, making him the first leader to occupy the post twice.
The year 2014 has been an eventful one for India. The country got a new government and a new state, broke new frontiers in various fields and of course its share of controversies.
It will now take at least two more years to get a clarity on the priorities and policies of the leadership of the new state of Telangana.
In the midst of mounting pressure from both pro and anti-Telangana leaders, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh ahead of the crucial United Progressive Alliance and Congress working committee meetings to take a final decision on the separate statehood issue.
A sensational interview on India-China ties, with the man most qualified to answer.
'Every director is subject to some kind of pressure,' former CBI director Dr R K Raghavan tells Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier. 'Ultimately, it all depends on the individual and the maturity and sense of fair play of the director. It is up to the director to cope with the pressure and if he is a man of character, he can.'
Eight states and Union Territories have Muslim share of population in excess of national average of 13 per cent. Mayank Mishra report
A 25-year quest by nearly 1,000 scholars to document and present one of the world's oldest living traditions came to fruition when the 'Encyclopedia of Hinduism' was unveiled in Columbia.
The presence of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa was not the only reason why Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa stayed away from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's swearing-in ceremony, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Incidents of arson, firing and vandalism were reported from Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Punjab as protesters agitated against the dilution of the SC/ST Act.
'Only the smoke is coming out now. Let us prevent the lava from coming out by taking proper measures.' 'I have told every leader that you cannot have a stable government without winning the confidence of the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and the most backward castes.' 'Leaders feel that by giving a sop here and there and by symbolic actions, they can win votes. That's all they want. Votes.'
Sunday's results may be a bitter pill that the Congress has to swallow -- that its future cannot be hitched to Rahul unless he can resonate with the people, feels Saroj Nagi.
In dramatic scenes, Umar Khalid, the Jawaharlal Nehru University student who had been untraceable after being accused of sedition, returned to the campus late on Sunday evening. Khalid turned up at JNU's administration block, where hundreds of students began to gather, and gave a rousing speech just shy of 14 minutes, insisting that he would stand his ground and asked that all students unite against the attacks on our country. This is what he had to say.
Modi's NDA is good enough to give a psychological boost to the once 'untouchable' BJP and Modi but if the NDA doesn't get a majority on its own, then walking the last mile will be the greatest challenge of this election for Modi, says Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com
With Narendra Modi about to make his first Independence Day speech, there is a buzz in Delhi that Modi will make some big announcements to signal major reforms and directional shifts. But we have to wait and see if it happens, says Mohan Guruswamy.
Rediff.com gives you a look at newbies in the Council of Ministers
'This is not a Sanjay Baru or Natwar Singh type of book. It's not a memoir. It's not a book to reveal conversations, real or imaginary. This is not a book to position myself at the centre of the world.' Jairam Ramesh on his stint as environment minister.
The Marxists are heading for their worst debacle in many elections. How will May 16, 2014 affect India's Communists? T V R Shenoy surveys the landscape.
It is hoped that the decision of India's apex court will send a signal to politicians and their cronies from the world of business that the rule of the law does eventually prevail, says Paranjoy Guha Thakurta.
'It is a great misfortune that the Nehruvian Stalinists of India have colluded with the grand project of demeaning and destroying Sanskrit. Today, the number of Sanskritists in India is low, and falling,' says Rajeev Srinivasan.
Judge Srikanth 'Sri' Srinivasan is the front-runner to replace the late Justice Anthony Scalia on the US Supreme Court.
'India may be new to world politics and her military strength insignificant in comparison with that of the giants of our epoch.' 'But India is old in thought and experience and has travelled through trackless centuries in the adventure of life.' 'Throughout her long history she has stood for peace and every prayer that an Indian raises, ends with an invocation to peace.' Jawaharlal Nehru's memorable speech to the United States Congress.
'Why should the people of Odisha divert water from the Mahanadhi when 13 out of 32 districts are chronically drought prone?' 'Water is a state subject. Can you really nationalise rivers for which you need drastic amendments in the Constitution?'
The reliable Wasim Jaffer led from the front and scored his 35th Ranji century to guide Mumbai to 242/2 on day one of their Ranji Trophy Group A clash against Odisha at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday.
