Congress's Rajya Sabha MP and chief interlocutor of the Andhra Pradesh government who talked to the then PWG in 2004-05 speaks about his experience of tackling Maoism in the state and what could be done to curb the growing menace in India's central heartland.
'The top level will be development and then sab ka saath, sab ka vikas.' 'But at the street level, the tongue will be vicious.'
Indian intelligence agencies have often claimed that left-wing extremists are trying to make inroads in the militancy-hit regions of north-east to foment further unrest. But Jaideep Saikia, noted terrorism and conflict analyst, claims, "People who speak of Maoism taking roots in the north-east have not read history".
The "liberated zones" of the Leftist guerrillas in the Bastar region of Chhattisgarh contain some of the most precious and valuable minerals. But the state authorities could not explore the minerals as the area had been under the control of rebels.
India now faced a higher likelihood of a drought in some parts, as monsoon rain would be less than predicted in April, private weather forecaster Skymet said on Friday.
Monsoon is likely to be below normal in the current year at 93%.
'A Life With Wildlife is a must for all who are concerned about how a billion Indians will coexist with over 500 mammals and 1,300 birds, not to mention 25,000 flowering plant species in the new century,' says Mahesh Rangarajan.
Critics say the crackdown is to muzzle dissent and Rijiju's actions could lead to less foreign aid for projects that fight child marriage, provide clean water in slums and feed pregnant women.
The director of CRIDA said deficit rainfall may lead to increase in cultivation of pulses. "Though there is an initial shortfall, the area under pulses cultivation in northern states is likely to increase as it is used as a contingency crop."
The total solar eclipse passing over some of Earth's most densely-populated regions on Wednesday may become the most viewed ever.
Total area sown till last Friday was 16.56 mn hectares, up 23%.
'I can scarcely wait for this wretched twelve months to end. We began the year with an economy in the doldrums, continued with once in 10,000-year rains wreaking havoc across central India, and end as the pillars of the State seem bent on crumbling.'
The prolonged break in the rainy season that has caused widespread concern over the delay in kharif sowing is finally ending with the monsoon likely to advance into Mumbai and adjoining parts of Maharashtra in two or three days.
'If India is to emerge as a superpower, we must utilise our huge agricultural potential and not, as in past centuries, merely exploit our farmers,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
The 1971 war reaffirmed the importance of inspirational senior leadership in battle and heralded the emergence of a new fighting class amongst officers and men of India's armed forces.
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Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Rabri Devi said Chief Minister Nitish Kumar does not have the strength to stop Narendra Modi from coming to Bihar, the way her husband Lalu Prasad Yadav had stopped L K Advani during his rath yatra in 1990.
Next week could see some respite from the heat.
The US Fed's rate cycle is set to turn later this year, but India is in a much better position than it was in 2013.
But Citi's woes might call for more visionary and charismatic leadership than he can offer.
"The Australian government fully appreciates how central India is to our future," Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said in a speech at the University of Western Australia, his alma mater, while making a strong push for closer ties in social, economic and defence sectors.
'If the nub of India's sensitivity over the Chinese presence in Doklam is the enhanced threat to the Siliguri Corridor, a vital link to the northeast, does it serve the national purpose to have the districts along it, and then much of the tribal northeast, in turmoil?' asks Shekhar Gupta.
'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.
Total area impacted across India pegged at 18.9 mn hectares.
Broader markets are outperforming the benchmark indices- BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices are up 0.8%-1%.
However, it's too soon to see any trend; July rain is key.
The city is waging a war against garbage, says Anjuli Bhargava.
The Gujjars, who are agitating for Scheduled Tribe status in Rajasthan, today decided to intensify their stir and gave a call for a 'bandh' (shutdown) in Delhi tomorrow, threatening to seal all entry points to the capital
Government has received reports that Naxals have undertaken employment in urban areas in order to earn livelihood and evade police action, Parliament was informed on Tuesday.
'Trains, at one point in time, were not just a mode of transport. They told a story,' says Bibek Debroy.
Mukesh Ambani Group-controlled Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd said on Friday there would be no change in its management post amalgamation of its subsidiaries with itself.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs last month allowed ONGC and Oil India Limited to tap shale resources in blocks allotted to them on a nomination basis.
Skymet is credited with correctly predicting the 2009 drought.
"It is a super fighter and a mean machine," was how one RAF pilot labelled IAF's frontline Sukhoi-30MKI combat jet.
People in coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh heaved a sigh of relief on Thursday as the third cyclonic storm in over a month, which was expected to cause extensive damage, weakened before it hit the state.
Indian Petrochemicals Corporation, part of the Reliance group, has decided to merge of six group companies with itself.
Prices of buffaloes and cattle have fallen by 20-30%.
The government must expand the farm insurance cover and advice banks and financial institutions to settle crop insurance claims in the drought-hit areas without delay.
'We are facing a crackdown for more than a year. Our permission to collect funds was cancelled. Our bank accounts were frozen.' 'We believe that our work in India is very important. We want to be the environment watchdog. We do not want to waste time fighting legal battles.'
'We in the Anglicised middle class are unconcerned about the vast majority of Indians. We insist on only our concerns and anxieties being debated. All other Indians are irrelevant,' says Aakar Patel.
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