With her trademark cotton sari and rubber slippers and her generous doles in rural Bengal, many describe Mamata Banerjee as "ultra left."
There is considerable discomfort within the defence ministry about the Rafale deal.
There is more than what meets the eye to the wealth accumulated by Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal.
The civil services seem to have gone sour under the NDA government. Ministers exercise executive power in a partisan manner. Consequently, a regime of favouritism holds sway over the corridors of power, feels Ram Ugrah.
The world's largest and most respected centre for scientific research has shown how collaborative effort in the acrimonious field of particle physics can prove of enormous benefit to mankind.
When Rediff.com's Archana Masih and Rajesh Karkera set course from the foothills of the Himalayas to the Arabian Sea, they could not think of a better place to begin their journey than the stately campus that has given India some of its greatest military heroes.
From coming up with the correct list of beneficiaries to finding enough people to work as Ayushman Mitras to generating awareness about the scheme - many things need to fall in place before it can be successfully launched in a few days.
On the eve of the Modi government's two years in office, the RSS-linked Bharatiya Mazdoor Sabha leadership met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. After the meeting, the BMS claimed the FM told its delegation 'the government has realised that labour reforms are not essential for industrial growth in the country.'
It is impossible the control or reduce the fury of nature but, at a lower scale, it is worth experimenting to modify it, says Ajay Lele.
Modi asked Delhiites not to repeat the "mistake" of voting for AAP.
Natarajan said she had an unpopular job but she never did anything wrong
'Those who have seen the functioning of the Modi government in Gujarat know that the issues related to Hindutva and issues of economy and growth function simultaneously.' 'Modi's politics are based on the understanding of the middle-class consumer society which is in pursuit of material aspirations.' Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com reveals the Modi government's economic and political plans for the year ahead.
The media has given the PM and his government a far easier time than it probably deserves.
Nobody is clear what 'minimum government maximum governance' means.
There should be one comprehensive and credible report on weather for India since a major part of the economy is dependent on it, says 'weather man' Angshujyoti Das.
'The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code is neither beneficial to banks nor helpful for the borrower.' 'Genuine people who are caught in economic stagnation will lose everything and thousands will lose jobs.'
'Vaghela has said he is with the Congress.' 'The controversy that he may switch to the BJP is a creation of that party to create confusion in the Congress.'
Mumbai's Chabad House, which was attacked in the 26/11 terror attacks, is unlike any other Jewish centre, Rabbi Israel Kozlovsky tells Vaihayasi Pande Daniel.
'It appears that Prime Minister Modi has to undo 50 years of State monopoly in the defence sector during which public undertakings like HAL or DRDO monopolised defence production and development with disastrous consequences.'
Public bicycle-sharing systems are entering this untapped market.
Drawing and painting can be employed to develop students into critical thinkers, problem solvers and communicators.
The BRICS summit made clear that China's support for Pakistan is unwavering. China will continue to pressure India to ease tensions with Pakistan and resolve the Kashmir dispute.
With just eight days left for the winter session, Jaitley and Parliamentary Affairs Minster M Venkaiah Naidu held consultations with Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and Deputy Leader Anand Sharma.
To a lay observer, therefore, India today presents two conflicting realities.
Glaring contrasts in various spheres in this Nehru-Gandhi family pocketborough are being raised by the rivals to target Congress President Sonia Gandhi for lop-sided development in the constituency from where she is seeking a fourth term.
Almost every home in this area has a slogan 'Jal, Jangal, Jameen' painted outside. Rashme Sehgal reports for Rediff.com on the four-year battle to save the Mahan forest in Madhya Pradesh.
'For us, North Indians, who are habitual late comers and lackadaisical in our temple attire; who go to temples in jeans and shorts; who keep our temples dirty; where deities are placed amidst all prasadam and where rotting flowers are strewn on the pathway -- Manipur teaches us grace and discipline,' says Tarun Vijay.
For those who are unaware of the migrant crisis the EU is facing and wondering just what the fuss is all about, here's an explanation of what's going on.
The processes that create a seven per cent-plus GDP growth rate without a similar growth in jobs are far from fully understood, says Ajit Balakrishnan.
A list of all the foreign visits taken up by PM Narendra Modi this year and their outcomes.
'If you solve it in one day, it will go after a day.' 'If it is there for 100 years or 1,000 years, reservation has to continue.'
From the Syrian civil war to the Ukrainian crisis to the terror unleashed by the dreaded Islamic State, there was no lack of news in 2014. Rediff.com presents a selection of the year's most enduring moments year from around the world.
By removing Avinash Chander last week, the government has chosen to sacrifice the organisation's most potent symbol of success
The fiscal deficit of the Centre remains a worry, running at over 6.5 per cent of GDP in April-September 2014, mainly because of revenue shortfalls from exaggerated projections in the government's July Budget and despite the relief on subsidies from lower oil prices.
Instead of the Hindustan Turbo Trainer-40, which Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd could build, export, overhaul, upgrade and even modify into a light-attack aircraft, powerful lobbies have promoted a Swiss trainer -- the Pilatus PC-7 Mark II.
'There is no danger of the suggestion being accepted in a hurry, as we are still discussing the design of an IFS tie and trainee officers are still taught how to handle forks and knives.'
Take a look at the skills that matter and how you can acquire them.
There are some 20-odd schemes with this default provision, or something close to it.
We should improve the business climate in Mumbai and Delhi, and India's ranking would immediately shoot up, says Bibek Debroy, a full member of NITI Aayog.
'Xi Jinping got a dose of Modi's medicine inside the tent where he was being hosted on the banks of the Sabarmati river.' 'Modi reportedly told him, looking deep into his eyes: "This was not expected of your country. Can you tell me when the troops are withdrawing?".'
