The Naxal movement has such a complex history that several books have been written to understand it. Bastar: The Naxal Story seeks to reduce it to bullet points and stereotypes, observes Deepa Gahlot.
From guns to handlooms. From forest trails to a public runway. Women who had once been associated with that conflict walked into the spotlight wearing Bastar's traditional textiles.
A senior Maoist commander, Papa Rao, surrendered with his team in Chhattisgarh, signalling a significant blow to Left-Wing Extremism in the region. This event underscores the impact of sustained security pressure and rehabilitation efforts on the Maoist movement.
A combination of security pressure and rehabilitation efforts has significantly weakened Naxalism in India, leading to numerous surrenders and the elimination of key leaders.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday appealed to Naxals to give up violence, lay down arms and surrender, saying an all-out operation will otherwise be carried out against them.
'From every point of view, they have faced an extremely difficult couple of years, and the setback they have suffered is irreversible.' 'This reality has begun to set in even amongst the top-level cadres. That is why, in recent times, we have witnessed a huge number of senior-level cadres emerging from the jungle and deciding to renounce violence and join the mainstream.'
'Elections and audience interest in specific movies are often independent factors.'
'When I am doing a film, that film is not propaganda for me. That's a true thing.'
After the lull in January and February when only a handful of movies hit the screens, it's going to be a rather crowded March in the theatres.
How can one not sit up and take note of her wacky style?
Films that turned out to be box office disappointments.
Just when it seemed that Bollywood had recovered with multiple big hits in 2023, it all came down in 2024 with a flurry of flops, disasters and mega disasters.
'There is need to invent another enemy.' 'If you can add Maoists to Muslims, the tukde-tukde thread will tie in nicely.' 'You might even have a 'nation in grave danger' story by the summer of 2019,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
The first prime minister to visit this Maoist hotbed in three decades, Narendra Modi on Saturday asked Naxals to abjure gun and allow peace so that the macabre drama of death will end to pave the way for development.
'The category of crime and criminals called Maoist or Naxal or #UrbanNaxals is an illegitimate creation of right-wing propaganda media frenzy.' 'It is a fiction repugnant to the Constitution and the law of the land,' argue Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira.
Laxmi Sorte and Kaustav Ghosh, who travelled across 29 Indian states and five Union territories in 101 days, recommend a list of lesser known places in India to add to your travel bucket list.
The Wire news portal, in the third part of its revelations from the international collaborative journalistic investigation called the Pegasus Project, reported that those marked as potential targets for surveillance include Ambedkarite activist Ashok Bharti; academic and chronicler of life in Naxal-dominated regions Bela Bhatia; railway union leader Shiv Gopal Mishra and Delhi-based labour rights activist Anjani Kumar.
Hidma Madavi, who had a Rs 12 lakh reward on his head, was arrested without a single bullet being fired.
It is the low cost of iron ore extracted from their adivasi homeland mines that enables steelmakers like Tata Steel and Essar, and miners like NMDC, not only to be among the most profitable companies in India, but also gives it the financial muscle to make huge overseas acquisitions. Ultimately, it is the poor adivasi who pays for it with his home and hearth and gets no credit for it! Either from the State, which connives in their exploitation, or the industry that lords over their resources, says Mohan Guruswamy.
Rather than make it a BJP or anti-BJP battle, it is more important to have a dialogue with the protesting students and understand their psyche, feels Devanik Saha.
The NDA candidate tells the Election Commission that the Maoists plan to kidnap him.
The film's mechanics and motivations are laughable, says Raja Sen.
With days to go before Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh go to polls, the Congress is struggling to make an impact in the two key heartland states which have been ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party for two successive five-year terms.
'I think governments -- whether this one or the ones earlier -- have not understood the strength of the Indian Railways... that it can easily add 2.5 per cent to GDP.'
