In October 2007 Raja Sen visited Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal's village in Punjab to find out how its residents, and relatives, feel about their oddest export. His report was published in India Abroad, a weekly newspaper published in the US and owned by Rediff.com.
The 67-year-old hasn't only received a clear-cut mandate for an unprecedented fourth term but also done it on his own. From distributing tickets to planning party campaigns to chalking out strategies for the present and the future, the chief minister had played a stellar role throughout, and emerged successful in his endeavour. Bikash Mohapatra reports
'India's economy is growing faster compared to the developed economies of the world.' 'More importantly, it is growing faster compared to most of the developing economies.' 'The monsoon is not the only thing that drives the rural economy and certainly not the national economy.' 'It is too simplistic to reduce everything to the monsoon.'
What is it about the charm of the Northeast and its mountains that it takes prisoners?
'By the time the ground dries up, considering that the homes are still submerged, winter will be here. By the end of October, it is going to be very, very cold. By the end of November, it will be freezing, and it would have snowed by mid December. So before the ground can dry up, there will be snow.' 'The anger has not receded with the water. It persists. The floods have completely finished whatever 5 per cent chance Omar Abdullah had left with the public... He is seen as someone who is highly arrogant and is coming across as one who has no feelings for his people.' A Kashmiri whose family has lived in J&K since before Partition, tells Archana Masih/Rediff.com how the government and media failed the people when flood waters turned Paradise into hell.
'As the night wore on, we could hear insects, see fireflies and slowly, the stars took over the naked sky.' 'For those of us who spend the largest part of our lives in a cement jungle and wake up to machine sounds, this was music.'
Union Agriculture Minister and Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, in an exclusive interview to CNN-IBN reiterated that he is not going to contest the next Lok Sabha elections.
Anup Raaj, 23, describes how Super 30, a free IIT-JEE coaching institute located in Patna, Bihar, changed his life.
Only three percent of Indians pay income tax; our tax-GDP ratio is among the lowest in the world. This must change. Our elites must realise that India's poverty has damaging consequences for them, and that they can help decrease it. The food security bill, with all its limitations, will hopefully contribute to generating such awareness, says Praful Bidwai.
'When we became a Rs 100 crore company in October, we celebrated in grand scale. We have grown from producing 10 packets a day in 2005, with just my cousin managing the kitchen, to 50,000 packets a day with 1,100 employees in 10 years.' 'If you have the passion to start something, do it immediately. Don't wait for tomorrow.'
Annet Mahendru -- the half-Indian making waves in The Americans -- on her love for Bollywood, daal-chawal and being a Russian spy.
'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.