'It was the Mughals who first established standard units of measurement and maintained offices of meticulous record keepers and auditors, departing from the more haphazard methods of earlier regimes.' 'By the end of the 16th century, their revenue and judicial administrations exhibited an obsessive preoccupation with order, the efficient management of time, and a spirit of rational self-control -- all of them characteristics of early modernity,' point out Sheldon Pollock and Benjamin Ellman.
'Peace talks with Pakistan are like accepting a dinner invitation from cannibals and hoping to return alive,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
In the concluding article of a six-part series, Business Standard visits Ludhiana, one of the largest industrial towns in Punjab, to assess the effect of demonetisation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had invited ASEAN leaders to be the chief guests.
'Notwithstanding the realisation among the Indian leadership to build up its navy for the force's expanding role, the Indian Navy was allocated only 15% of the interim defence budget presented in Parliament in February 2019.' 'The outlay for the navy's capital acquisition is not even adequate to meet its committed liabilities,' points out Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
Aseem Chhabra salutes the late Italian Master and his cinema.
In a setback for China, an international arbitration court ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear some territorial claims the Philippines has filed against it over disputed areas in the South China Sea, a ruling rejected by China as null and void.
Indians want change and progress. They should be willing to accept tough decisions, says Sanjeev Nayyar.
The decision to not attend the forum attended by 28 heads of state and 130 national delegations is a clear break from its usual policy of going along with the crowd.
Sitharaman, who is in Russia on a three-day visit, also met her Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe on the sidelines of the international security conference.
Japan's Nikkei fell 0.5% and South Korea's Kospi lost 1.3%.
Home-grown taxi booking companies which have a business model similar to Uber's might have stricter security norms imposed on them.
'Despite much hype of optimism, everyone went home empty-handed without a clear picture where they are heading in the future,' notes Dr Rajaram Panda.
The PLA Air Force has conducted a combat air patrol in the South China Sea recently, which will become "a regular practice" in the future
The latest update is on Zomato's fourth acquisition overseas this year.
'Temperature and wind can be predicted more easily than rainfall.' 'Rainfall, as common experience suggests, is very spotty.' 'The last bit of physics required that tells us whether it is going to rain or not is very hard.' Professor Roddam Narasimha, the eminent scientist, explains the monsoon, climate change and global warming, in a fascinating conversation with Shivanand Kanavi.
China on Wednesday said the US' naval and air incursions in the artificial islands in the South China Sea will be counter-productive leading to "miscalculation" and "crisis", as Beijing summoned the American ambassador to protest the US Navy's sailing of a warship into the disputed waters.
India and China met and spoke a lot this year, but failed to produce any meaningful results.
Suddenly the sands are shifting and even friends are acting strange.
How will the Modi Sarkar's likely return affect other nations?
'When Modi was having his maiden meeting with Donald Trump, China is up to its old tricks again, by causing a distraction on the Doklam plateau,' says B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant.
According to a report by the Institute for Economics and Peace, an independent, think tank dedicated to shifting the world's focus to peace as a positive and tangible measure of progress, India ranks 143rd
'The Chinese mindset and approach to India is far different from that in Pakistan.' 'This reality makes it possible for us to follow an engagement policy with one, while militating against engagement with the other.'
Soaked in patriotism, hundreds of Indians on Monday proudly marked the country's 70th Independence Day, as the tricolour fluttered and the national anthem reverberated at Indian missions across the world.
'The top level will be development and then sab ka saath, sab ka vikas.' 'But at the street level, the tongue will be vicious.'
Amazing photography can leave you speechless. We were left without any words when we came across the finalists of the 14th annual Smithsonian Magazine 2016 Photo Contest. Out of 48,000 submissions from photographers in 146 countries, Smithsonian Magazine chose 70 striking finalists in their 14th Annual Photo Contest. Now, it's up to the public to pick a winner.
'Islamic State has declared that the liberation of Islamic Xinjiang from China is an objective. Beijing may well find that Pakistan is unable to assist in any meaningful way,' says China expert Jayadeva Ranade.
'The creation of Pakistan was integral to Britain's grand strategy.' 'If they were to ever leave India, Britain's military planners had made it clear that they needed to retain a foothold in the NWFP and Baluchistan because that would provide the means to retain control of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain and Qatar.'
'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.
'As the interest rates rise, people are going to say why should I be taking big risks when I can get 4 to 5 per cent in a bank account.' 'So, I think you have to change your thinking.' 'You need to look at the balance sheet, look at dividends.' 'These issues that have been ignored.'
While the tax holiday for the factory coming to an end might be a factor, many say the business model of Microsoft (which acquired Nokia's handset division last year), as well as freebies offered by the Vietnamese government, might also have played a role.
'China, which had earlier blockaded New Delhi's bid to join the Nuclear Suppliers Group by citing the nuclear non-proliferation law, finds itself in an awkward position and international isolation.' 'India needs to pursue a policy of mediation between China and the Southeast Asian countries for regional security,' says Srikanth Kondapalli.
Pat Farmer on how he plans to conquer India, south to north, over 60 days and 4,600 km.
'They do not want us to construct roads or to conduct health camps. I see no logic in their demands,' says West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya.
'There are major implications for India. Though there was a transparently thin attempt to project the troop reduction as intended to promote peace, the downsizing is actually part of plans to streamline and strengthen the PLA, capable of defending China's national interests at home and abroad,' says Jayadev Ranade.
Admiral Sam Locklear heads the US Pacific Command, making him the most powerful military commander on earth. With 60 per cent of the US Navy under him, PACOM oversees 52 per cent of the planet. Locklear is America's military pointsman for 36 countries, including India and China.
Chefs in Mumbai are unleashing their creativity to woo gourmets with global vegetarian fare. Mini Ribeiro picks her 10 favourite restaurants.
Three-times champions Iran cruised into the 2015 Asian Cup finals after thrashing Lebanon 4-1 on Tuesday, but China missed the chance to join them and face a nerve-jangling final qualifier after being held to a goalless draw by Saudi Arabia.
There is speculation that China released the White Paper on Tibet in a hurry after a Spanish court agreed to hear charges of genocide against former Chinese president Hu Jintao. Ajai Shukla reports
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