'...Cliffy with utter disregard to his personal safety, charged through the fire zone, closed in on the enemy, threw hand grenades inside their bunkers and killed six enemy soldiers!' '...He was hit by a volley of bullets. Even before breathing his last, Cliffy killed a Pakistani soldier in hand-to-hand combat...' Captain Keishing Clifford Nongrum, who was just 24, received the Mahavir Chakra posthumously for his superhuman act of valour in the Kargil War just 18 months after he joined the Indian Army. Archana Masih/Rediff.com remembers one of India's Bravest Of The Brave as the nation salutes the 527 soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice for the Motherland on Vijay Diwas.
'When the adversary has tasted what you can do, he is going to be more experienced in countering how the Indians think.' 'He will go back, rework and come back.'
'The government needs to think if a draconian, outdated and colonial law is needed in a democratic, multi religious, diverse country governed by a democratic government.'
'Modi's charisma and appeal is unparalleled.' 'Yogi has his own appeal and people connect.' 'He is seen as trustworthy, hardworking and honest.' 'People feel that these qualities are both common to Yogi and Modi.'
Increase of 10% to 12% likely in a bid to improve citizens' mood after demonetisation.
'India is not going to accept whatever the Chinese say. That is not going to happen.'
'Keeping Kashmir out of the informal summit does not mean that they have given up their strategic interest.'
Intensifying their protest, three students of the Film and Television Institute of India have gone on hunger strike demanding the resignation of Gajendra Chauhan.
'There was a lot of resentment against the BJP which has not translated into votes, this is surprising.'
'By killing innocent people, they are using Sun Tzu's tactics of 'kill one, terrify thousands.'
'It will be wrong to raise the expectations of tribals because of a tribal President. 'Tribal issues have not been resolved for 150 years.'
'But will there be matching action as far as tribals are concerned on the ground?'
'Log kehte hai desh to humne Modi ko diya hua hai, par pradesh nahi diya hai (we have given Modi the mandate to run the nation, not the state).'
Major Ruchi Agarwal is commander of the United Nations Female Engagement Team in the conflict-ridden Democratic Republic of Congo.
Akanksha Mary Balmuchu from Jharkhand's Ho tribe is starting a Master's programme in climate change in the UK. When she walks into campus, she fulfils not only her dream, but that of her grandmother.
'We have to keep that in mind and have plan A B C D because the trust factor with Pakistan or China is very low.'
'I set out really early because it gets very hot.' 'The soles of my feet burn by the time I have finished going house to house on foot.'
Winner of the 1996 Jnanpith and 1997 Ramon Magsaysay Awards, Mahasweta Devi firmly believed that 'real history is made by ordinary people.'
'Anyone can come and anyone can go.' 'There is no ideology or vision that differentiates one party from another.'
'Safest' looks like a phone booth, but is a state-of-the-art mobile COVID-19 testing lab.
'The aim of Russian policy is to reform European security, stop NATO expansion and in a more general sense -- set up the new rules of relations between the great powers.' 'From this perspective. the invasion of Ukraine is quite pointless.'
'It would be a huge mistake to think that Gorbachev's reforms did not achieve anything.' 'We all live in the world, which is in many respects a result of Glasnost and Perestroika.'
'In this election, the only thing that is going to matter is which caste aligns with which coalition.'
'If our troops on the frontlines were sleeping for two hours, they can perhaps now sleep for 2.5 hours because when the adversary is right in front, then you can't even blink your eyes, you have to be absolutely alert.'
'The Congress is trying to cover up their anti-incumbency by highlighting the Dalit CM factor.'
'The PLA has continued to do exercises and drills and recently carried out air exercises with fighter jets.'
'If the Congress wants to keep the ship afloat, it will have to bury the differences.'
'A drought is like a fire. It licks everything in its wake - crop, trees, animals, humans...' The plains of the Ganga in Bihar have a raw, unmatched, beauty, but also bear the anguish of its farmers.
'Times will be tough, but we will get by and by the grace of Lord Balaji.'
From the humble boxing ring of Dighwara village comes the amazing story of girl boxers who have started a revolution of sorts in Bihar's rural hinterland.
Rai Mamta Kumari's first shot at politics ended before it could begin. She had gone to file her nomination with a procession of 56 four wheelers and distributed 1,800 food packets. But then something went wrong.
'Entry and qualification must not be through concession and must be reserved for only those who meet the stringent standards of the institution'.
'We can expect heightened belligerence from China.'
'If things don't work on the ground and they continue moving at this pace, it will vanish.'
'This was the first ever visit by a President in a re-election year so it sent a strong signal of the priority of the relationship and the desire to continue to strengthen it.'
'The term 'pro-growth' must be qualified somewhat because, while a rising tide will lift all boats, it will not necessarily do so equally.'
'China would want to take a tougher stance against India forming those strategic partnerships and prevent Quad from becoming a military alliance.'
Nitin Singh, tourist guide, spent 75 minutes with Donald and Melania Trump at the Taj Mahal. 'They were very down to earth and listening to me intently as I told them the story of the Taj and the Mughals.'
'At some stage they will convert it to life imprisonment or something else,' says Former R&AW officer and author of Mission R&AW R K Yadav.
'Outside the core voter base of upper caste Hindus, there is a large section unhappy with the performance of the BJP.'
