Her great grandfather began sugar co-operatives in Maharashtra. Her grandfather was an eight time MP. Her uncle is currently leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra assembly. Her cousin joined the BJP on Tuesday, March 12. Nila Vikhe Patil, who could one day become prime minister of Sweden, unravels her India connections in an e-mail interaction with Rediff.com's Vaihayasi Pande Daniel.
'I cannot conceive of any reason than my unsparing criticism of government policies that the government picked me to send a message to many who dare to take it on.'
Anup Raaj, 23, describes how Super 30, a free IIT-JEE coaching institute located in Patna, Bihar, changed his life.
Martin Sorell on how effective is Modi's media strategy
'They don't always agree with our governments, their teachers or their parents, but it is the conviction of their ideas, and their determination to share them with the world that, I believe, is one of the greatest sources of hope for our planet.' 'The colonisation of space, understanding the very building blocks of matter and the universe, utilising our understanding of the human genome to conquer disease -- these are the tasks waiting for a fellowship of minds to realise new triumphs in our collective destiny.'
With India poised to become the largest economy in the world by 2030, it cannot afford to leave half of its workforce behind.
'I have noticed how a certain country wants to establish the presence of ISIS in Bangladesh.' 'Are these terrorists working under some religious inspiration or they are being lured by an obnoxious amount of money?' 'For some mysterious reasons, no action is taken by the government against suspicious organisations.'
'Tagore repeatedly denounced the "My country, right or wrong" attitude.' 'We often use the phrase "unity in diversity" like a cliche and often make diversity secondary, giving precedence to unity.' 'You do not have to shout from the rooftops that we are very tolerant.'
'I am doing all this for the students of Kerala, and when they come and hit me, it is very frustrating.' 'My regret is that something that could set off for the future has been thwarted.' 'We have not changed the syllabus for decades, we have not accepted norms in education and technology is hardly used. Today's students are studying what I studied decades ago.'
Mohammad Sajjad profiles Professor Riazur Rahman Sherwani, 94, versatile mind, intrepid intellectual.
In the piece below, Roy's stepdaughter Trisha Ahmed, a second-year student at Johns Hopkins University, recounts the father she remembers and the attack she's trying to forget.
'India and China have to make concrete progress with regard to the border issue, addressing the trade deficit, and facilitating people-to-people interactions. This has to happen in the next two, three years.' China expert Tansen Sen tells Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com how India and China can take their relations to the next level.
If confirmed by the US Senate, Haley, 44, would be the first Indian-American to serve in a Cabinet-level position in any presidential administration.
Salman Khan of Khan Academy explains how he is pioneering the cause of free online education.
Thursday's savage murder of writer Avijit Roy in Dhaka raises troubling questions about religion-inspired terror in Bangladesh.
Economist Dale W Jorgenson declares that India is doing "very, very well" and forecasts that India might continue to outrun world economies, including China over the next many years.
'Counter terrorism does not appear to be good guys fighting the bad ones; it is about people being picked up, detained and charged with crimes they did not commit.'
Congress Vice-president Rahul Gandhi, in an interview to a leading daily, has stated that he is "ready to take charge".
Ritu Jha/Rediff.com reports from California on the largest TieCon ever.
From extreme poverty to building a company worth Rs 60 crore, Raja Nayak's incredible rags-to-riches story is an inspiration for all.
Subramanium, a feisty character, is not going to let anyone sully his reputation. He is ready to answer any question, any change which is more than what the Modi regime might be ready for. One man's integrity and toughness can crack a regime's carefully-built faade. Suddenly its backstage looks murky, says Shiv Visvanathan.
'The original dream of people like Faiz was that Pakistan would be something different from the old India: Progressive, forward looking, democratic (if not socialist), tolerant, diverse and pluralistic.' 'I don't think anyone foresaw the catastrophe that Partition was to become.'
The controversy over Sant Rampal and his army of followers taking the law into their hands has once again thrown the spotlight on the clout that India's godmen possess.
The farmers of Khentia are now working in tandem with the IIT team.
Jayapur, adopted by the prime minister, is reaping the benefits of his endorsement, causing resentment in villages nearby, says Manavi Kapur.
In an interview to HarmonyIndia.org, the artist, who had famously said that he lived to paint and painted to live, spoke of what the 'bindu' meant to him, about his friend M F Husain and the legacy that he will leave behind.
Siddhartha Kaul, president of SOS Children's Villages International that has been involved in earthquake relief work in Nepal, speaks to Rashme Sehgal.
We need to question ourselves if we are to be implicated as well in the institutional murder of Rohith and many other Rohiths, if not bodily but in spirit, because of our complicity in naturalising this elitist, exclusionary, discriminatory-to-the-core conception of education, says Kishalaya Mukhopadhyay.
Sudha Murty worries that India has still not learnt its lessons from history.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has to deal with 3 powerful enemies: the media, the political establishment, and business houses.
Manobi Bandyopadhyay, India's first transgender principal of a college, speaks of her struggles in a moving interview.
Sabyasachi Mishra who scored a perfect 100 with just two months of preparation shares his study secrets.
Shubham Kumar Gautam, son of a farmer and a Super 30 student, recounts how, in a journey laced with perseverance, grit and determination, he achieved what seemed impossible.
