Here's a look at some of the other darbars in the hard-to-please city of Amritsar, known for its appetite for food and drink and its insolent humour:
'Assuming the official defence allocations represent the true picture, the $142 billion figure still represents a phenomenal increase and surpasses that of Japan ($42 billion), India ($40 billion), South Korea ($33 billion) and several other Asian countries put together and shows that China is flexing its military muscle.'
For India to endorse Nepal's Buddhist conference will be like sipping from a poisoned chalice, warns former RA&W official Jayadeva Ranade.
Prakash Javadekar enjoys being information and broadcasting and parliamentary affairs minister, but heading the green ministry is turning out to be thornier than he had expected.
'An event that should have made India proud was being perceived entirely as a money-making enterprise, resting on malpractices and without any benefits whatsoever for the Capital and its people.'
The scenic mountainous valley, which earlier bustled with presence of foreign tourists, now wear a deserted look. Kunal Dutt reports
'If you go by the essence of the Constitution of India, I don't see any problem in having a separate PM for J-K.'
"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.
'2019 is just a year away and Modi can do with some peace and tranquility on the external front.' 'There are risks, of course, but isn't Modi a risk taker?' asks Ambassador B S Prakash.
The state is trying hard to improve ease of doing business by several notches.
More than 3,000 squads under health and local self-government departments have started the process of cleaning houses and public places, official sources said.
'Unless we change and we see a change in the direction we are taking, times can only get worse.'
'If, as appears to be the case, India is on way to 'mending fences' with China, and China is equally desirous to 'reset' the relationship, this could be a self-reflexive moment in India's positioning vis-a-vis not just the Dalai Lama, but also the Tibetan issue and China as a whole,' points out China expert Alka Acharya.
The challenges authorities face in cleaning Ganga and other holy rivers in Varanasi.
India said it firmly believes that a peaceful and secure neighbourhood will yield "rich dividends" for SAARC nations.
'I don't want a government to tell me that I can't be there for my sister's wedding.'
Six months after Nepal was devastated by a massive earthquake, relief efforts are literally running out of steam as weeks of protests against a new constitution have led to a critical shortage of fuel. Naomi Mihara reports on how NGOs are racing against time to reach aid to the people before winter sets in.
A sensational interview on India-China ties, with the man most qualified to answer.
It would be a chance lost if India cannot learn from and lean more on China to kick-start trade, infrastructure programmes, and increased ties, says Ravi Agrawal
'By the time he came out after nearly five hours, he had a one-to-one conversation with the President, a delegation-level meeting, a reception, a dinner, a tour of the White House and a joint statement of a kind none of his predecessors ever had,' says Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Several states that imposed prohibition in the past lifted it once revenue loss began to pinch
How will the Modi Sarkar's likely return affect other nations?
'Relations between India and Japan are robust and devoid of either shadow of history or any irritant.' 'In fact, there is plenty of warmth and goodwill earned over history. There are no negatives but only opportunities,' notes Dr Rajaram Panda.
Twenty two years before Kabir Khan's The Forgotten Army streams on Amazon Prime on January 24, 2020, his documentary of the same name was telecast on Doordarshan. On that occasion, Kabir Khan spoke to Amberish K Diwanji/Rediff.com about Netaji's Azad Hind Fauj and its many battles for India's freedom.
Chanda Kochhar, managing director of ICICI Bank, says the new government must take effective action bringing clarity around tax laws.
When people say the two-day visit was been successful in taking back the bilateral relationship to the political plane, essentially the reference (mostly left unsaid) is to the wresting of initiative from the intelligence 'agencies', whose meddling had hurt bilateral ties, says the distinguished editor Kanak Mani Dixit.
The population in Gaza has, for almost a decade, been facing Israel-created 'blockage' from the rest of the world. The isolation has given rise to tunnel phenomenon, an underground route for the procurement of essentials, says Ajey Lele
'The fabric of democracy is fraying,' says T V R Shenoy. 'It is being attacked not just by terrorists in Kashmir or by zealots in the North-East, but is being ripped apart even in Allahabad, in the Hindi heartland.'
Intermittent blasts and exchange of fire to neutralise two more terrorists continued on Sunday night at Air Force Station in Pathankot, Punjab where four terrorists were killed, seven security men lost their lives and 17 persons were injured in the over 40-hour-long operation.
Nitish Kumar and his officials maintain that Bihar has one of the lowest crime rates in India. Bihar police crime data indicates otherwise.
Gangster Chhota Rajan, arrested in Bali on Monday and who is likely to be extradited to India, was not one to forgive or forget easily. Mumbai's foremost crime writer S Hussain Zaidi recalls the time when Rajan was almost killed in an attack by his rival Chhota Shakeel, and how Rajan extracted revenge across continents.
'If you put colour-coded internal security maps of India in May 2014 and now, the picture won't be flattering to Modi.' 'Failures on internal security are now piling up and can break Modi's momentum,' says Shekhar Gupta.
Taking a swipe at the prime minister, Shinde said Modi used to say that UPA ministers were serving biryani to Pakistani leaders but what is happening now.
Unfortunately, by presuming guilt of the Army personnel in the Chattergam incident, for what is at worst an honest error, made in good faith, the ability of the military leadership to impose the fighting spirit necessary in their men to curb militancy stands seriously compromised.
A much-vacant mall in a sleepy industrial park is all that's left of the amount allegedly owed by Mangla Shree Properties against 0.2-mt sugar deliveries
Air Vice Marshal Arjun Subramaniam lists the major operational takeaways from the 1971 War in his new book 'India's Wars, A Military History, 1947-1971'.
On the second leg of his trip to Central Asia, Narendra Modi makes quite an impression in Astana, as he talks about terror and trade, films and the future
Assembly elections in Assam used to be a quiet affair and people outside the state would take little interest in the outcome. This time, even in faraway Delhi, people are keeping tabs on political developments in Assam.
'We should build a military with the capability to fight today's war on priority -- balancing it with the requirements of the future,' says Lieutenant General Anil Chait, one of the Indian Army's most cerebral thinkers who recently retired as chief of the Integrated Defence Staff, in his agenda for the new defence minister.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances