We sorted through countless photographs taken around the world to come up with the top photos of 2019. Together these images tell the story of the year -- capturing moments of hope and heartbreak, triumph and tragedy.
It is worth reconsidering if this fascination with either having a single party majority or Modi's leadership or, indeed, both, is such a great idea for India, says Udit Misra.
"If we do surgical strikes (in this area), you can imagine what all will come out," the prime minister said.
Ameya Khopkar, MNS chief Raj Thackeray's close friend, defending his stance, says, "When our soldiers are being killed on the borders by Pakistan, why should we host their actors here?"
Sunita Dugar, Parneet Sandhu and Neetha Jegan set out on a dream trip that changed their life. This is their story.
Jammu and Kashmir MLA Ramesh Arora wants momos banned, but are they really unhygienic and harmful?
Punjab CM Amarinder Singh said that the 'possibility of involvement of ISI-backed Khalistani/Kashmiri terror groups can't be ruled out'.
Following is the full text of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address from the ramparts of the Red Fort on the 73rd Independence Day.
Before undertaking such difficult projects as a 378-km railway line to Tawang, the government must seriously examine whether having quality roads is a better option.
'Both reflect prejudice and short-sightedness peculiar to Mr Modi's way of thinking.'
The Chinese have just one commander for all the forces confronting India. Commanders of all these forces answer to one man, and one headquarter. India, on the other hand, offers a diversity of options that is a military embarrassment in the 21st century. In Arunachal and Sikkim-Bhutan, the Eastern Army Commander is in charge. In the Uttarakhand (central) sector, it will be the Central Army Commander. The Himachal-Tibet border is the domain of the Western Army Commander. And all of Kashmir and Ladakh further on, the Northern Army's. Effectively, an array of at least eight 'three-star' commanders will be arrayed against one Chinese, says Shekhar Gupta.
The clichd path of conducting 'uninterrupted and uninterruptable' bilateral dialogue with Pakistan to improve ties remains unimplemented and un-implementable under prevailing circumstances that are unlikely to alter in the near future, says Rahul Bedi.
'Kanhaiya Kumar and others of his ilk are now out on bail. But what about the NIT 'anti-nationals'?' asks Amulya Ganguli.
Kerala, Jammu & Kashmir seek more time.
Bajrangi Bhaijaan is an overearnest, oversimplified, preposterously sweet and frequently schlocky film, which works because of a finely picked supporting cast, some sharp lines of dialogue and, most crucially, because of its overall heart, writes Raja Sen.
'The Opposition has no option but to make it an 'All versus One' fight to even think about winning.'
The brigade that conducted the drills was from the PLA's Tibet Military Command and is one of China's two plateau mountain brigades.
'Let us not, with all our drive for modernisation of the armed forces, send the forces to battle this time with second rung leadership,' says Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
Taking exception to Health Minister Harsh Vardhan not mentioning the death of healthcare workers due to Covid-19 in his statement in Parliament, the Indian Medical Association has published a list of 382 doctors who died due to the viral disease and demanded that they be treated as "martyrs".
The RSS realises that with a majority BJP government at the Centre and in several states, now was the best time to undermine and perhaps outdo the Congress-Left 'stranglehold' over campuses and young minds.
General V K Singh's remarks elicited sharp reactions from political parties as well as a media body.
'If we had sent a few airplanes (into Tibet), we could have wiped the Chinese out.' 'And everything could have been different in the 1962 War.' 'They did not believe me there was no Chinese air force.' 'Can you imagine what would have happened if we had used the IAF at that time?' 'The Chinese would have never dared do anything down the line.'
Honorary Captain Bana Singh won the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest ranking gallantry award, for recapturing a Pakistani post on the Siachen Glacier. Living a retired life in a quiet village in Jammu and Kashmir, he makes you feel that his act of phenomenal courage was part of a soldier's day at work.
'What do you think the Congress is today?' 'Is it a political party heading for a life-and-death battle?' 'Or an NGO, just doing its thing and hoping it will improve the state of the world?' asks Shekhar Gupta.
The Bombay Hemp Company offers goods fashioned out of hemp, the lesser known cousin of ganja.
After 17 tumultuous years, a nationwide Goods and Services Tax (GST) will rollout from midnight of June 30, overhauling India's convoluted indirect taxation system and unifying the $2 trillion economy with 1.3 billion people into a single market.
Bill Gates discussed with the Indian leader the opportunity to design 21st century toilets that do not need big sewage systems and water treatment plants.
He pointed out that such a restriction is not prevalent in many Islamic countries.
Traumatised by a four-day long ordeal in a submerged indoor stadium in Srinagar, over 200 students now rescued by the army cursed state government for false assurances but give credit of their survival to the teachers.
'When war is thrust on you as in 1962 and 1965 or is tempting as in 1971, ensure that all other fronts are kept quiet, leaving your army free to deal with one,' says Shekhar Gupta.
Through its early days to the 1980s, Pakistan sought to expand its sphere of Islamic influence through Afghanistan to Central Asia and got Pakistani citizens recruited in the Afghan government institutions in the 1990s when the Taliban were power. Now, it is looking eastward through India to Bangladesh and Myanmar to establish an imaginary caliphate.
Four Indian tailors working in Gaza for the last two years have been evacuated unharmed with the help of the Representative Office of India in Ramallah, a top United Nations official said.
The idea is to set up renewable energy generation capacity, including both solar and wind, along with the associated evacuation infrastructure, at a mega scale in the four Indian deserts -- Thar in Rajasthan, Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, Lahul & Spiti in Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh in Jammu & Kashmir.
"No other relationship of India has as many layers as our relations with China. We are the world's two most populous countries and among the fastest growing major economies. Our cooperation is expanding," he said.
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Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag will be the next Army Chief succeeding Gen Bikram Singh as the government on Tuesday appointed him to the top post, ignoring protests from Bharatiya Janata Party.
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's sage advice remains as relevant today as it was during his lifetime, says Vivek Gumaste.
Indians want change and progress. They should be willing to accept tough decisions, says Sanjeev Nayyar.
Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami met a hero's end battling Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorists in the jungles of Kashmir. His valour earned him the nation's highest gallantry award in peacetime this Republic Day. Archana Masih/Rediff.com travelled to Lal Kuan, Haldwani, to find out who this hero was.
Bhatnagar is expected to take charge of the CRPF later this week as he is on an official assignment in Indonesia in the capacity of NCB DG.
Travel companies, seeing massive cancellations, are now advising tourists to visit these destinations in August.
