Though dubbed as the 'war hero', the role of Rajapaksa in ending the conflict with the LTTE with the death of its supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran in 2009 is quite divisive as he stands accused of violating human rights, a charge he vehemently denies.
The winning entries in this year's Drone Photo Awards deliver an outstanding assortment of aerial images, from the overall winning shot, catching a school of salmon forming the shape of a heart, to a special category focusing on the profound ways COVID-19 has transformed our cities. Here we showcase a selection of the shots that will be on display in the Siena Photo Awards in Italy from October 24 to November 29.
Global Emerging Middle (GEM) is the next big market, says PwC. In India, this segment is expected to cross the USD 1 trillion threshold by 2021; globally the figure is expected to be in excess of USD 6 trillion by 2021.
A wave of self-immolations in protest against the Chinese government, which has rocked regions close to Tibet for several months, has now spread to Lhasa, where two Tibetans for the first time set themselves on fire outside a famous temple, leaving one of them dead. Dargye, from Aba County in the Tibetan area of southwest China's Sichuan province, and Tobgye Tseten, from Xiahe County in northwestern Gansu province, attempted self-immolations at Pargor Street.
Other strong men have stopped Modi and his hordes in states before, but none of them with a footprint or battle cry to shake up New Delhi, observes Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'Given Chinese sensitivity to anything to do with Tibet -- and the fact that in the 1950s it was the Tibet issue which led to the deterioration of India-China relations and the border war in 1962 -- India should be particularly careful in not triggering a Chinese reaction which it may not be able to handle,' says former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
India has around 355 million Internet users, second only to China, says a report
Euphoric crowds chanting "Go Olympics, Go Beijing" cheered the Olympic flame through Tiananmen Square on Wednesday.
The United States clawed back to the top of the Olympic medal table at the London Games, waving goodbye to Michael Phelps its greatest ever medal producer, and saying hello to a brigade of young newcomers who will carry the torch onto Rio.
Here are some of the best photos from around the world in the month gone by.
India's economy recovered faster than expected in the September quarter as a pick-up in manufacturing helped GDP clock a lower contraction of 7.5 per cent and held out hopes for further improvement on better consumer demand. The gross domestic product (GDP) had contracted by a record 23.9 per cent in the first quarter of the 2020-21 fiscal (April 2020 to March 2021) as the coronavirus lockdown pummelled economic activity.
'We're not going to give up hundreds of billions of dollars in orders and let Russia, China and everybody else have them. It's all about -- for me -- very simple, it's America first'
Seeks to cut biz costs by 10% for sellers across 24 verticals, by slashing fees and delivery charges.
'The BJP and RSS accept that the party is winning election after election because of Modi.' 'If the BJP is winning due to Modi, it will also lose due to Modi.'
The PM said a woman's power today underlined inner fortitude and self-confidence, which made her self-reliant.
This week's collection of unbelievably unusual images from across the world.
Majority of younger employees are keen on seeking jobs abroad.
'One of R&AW's greatest achievements is in projecting itself as benign.' 'This work -- done in tandem with the Diaspora and the MEA -- sells a story of India as mostly the victim.'
'The impact of a devaluation will be modest on India's exports'.
In an interview with Peerzada Abrar and Romita Majumdar, Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins said that his company would continue to bet heavily on India's engineering talent pool.
Indian companies feel it will be difficult to take on the competition from Bangladesh, Cambodia and others, with their made-in-India products. Ethiopia offers ready-to-use sheds, income tax breaks, training subsidies, and a tax-free gateway into the US, Europe and China. Moreover, labour is available for $60 per month compared to $130-$150 in India.
The new entrants are young, enterprising Chinese men and women who want to tap into the promising Indian market.
'When economic policies were attacked by people on his own side, he went ahead despite all the criticisms in the coalition, within the party and the Sangh Parivar.'
Here's your weekly digest of unusual moments from around the world.
The Indian Navy is fully capable of defending the nation against any form of threat, Sitharaman said.
These eight odd photos prove it's a mad, mad world!
'Without it, it is going to be much, much, much, much worse.' 'In the meantime, we really need to work on a sort of war footing, given that it is a natural disaster, provide relief, provide essentials, till we get biological herd immunity, we need to get economic immunity, and also social immunity.'
New joint ventures between Indian IT service firms and their Chinese counterparts hint at the formidable bilateral economy that could emerge.
Led by young flag-bearer Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, the athletes, clad in blue suits, waved to the crowd with small flags in their hands.
The beauty of the relationship between the two countries is that they agree to disagree and perhaps that is the strongest bond between the two governments and their relationships, notes Rup Narayan Das.
The nation ranked 138 among 180 countries, according to the annual World Press Freedom Index report.
'The Chinese -- up to the highest leadership -- will avoid a conflict because they know they will be badly licked.' 'The reputation they have painstakingly built over the last two-three decades of being a global power will be destroyed.'
'In these days of a communication revolution, was it necessary for him to go to every country?' 'Mahatma Gandhi had no internet or a twitter account, but the whole world recognised him as the greatest leader of the twentieth century,' says Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Swiggy is following a path that seems similar to what Meituan, one of China's largest O2O (online-to-offline) platforms that delivers food, sells movie tickets and offers hotel reservation, has done so far, reports Patanjali Pahwa.
Here's this week of photos that prove we live in a mad world.
As competition for the smartphones market hots up, new players are making waves.
We sorted through countless photographs taken around the world to come up with the top photos of 2019. Together these images tell the story of the year -- capturing moments of hope and heartbreak, triumph and tragedy.
Bonhomie between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Ahmedabad, setting aside formalities to strike a friendly tone were highlighted by the state media on Thursday, with write ups and photos on front pages.
Rediff.com takes a look at some nations which have faced the unexpected fury of Mother Nature recently.
Here's a glimpse of all that happened around the world last week, in 10 images
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances