'Bono, every time you clap your hands, a woman somewhere in the land of Ahimsa, is being abused.' 'Physically, emotionally or financially; at home, in the street or at work...' 'Maybe just for a little bit, you could tweak your humanitarian mode and turn womanitarian while in the land of Gandhi,' asks Priya Mirchandani on the eve of U2's Indian debut.
Remember the US withdrawal agreement was signed in February 2020. In the intervening period, a proper evacuation plan ought to have been in place. It was not. Consequently, tens of thousands of Afghans who had worked as interpreters, drivers, suppliers of goods and services, etc, face brutal retribution from the Taliban, Virendra Kapoor points out.
What goes behind the scenes for an American President's visit?
Singh received the aircraft at the Rafale fighter jet handing-over ceremony at Merignac in the presence of French Minister of Armed Forces Florence Parly. Members of the top military brass of France as well as senior officials of Dassault Aviation, the makers of Rafale, were also present at the ceremony.
'China physically occupies about 45,000 sq km of J&K as claimed by India, including 3,000 sq km captured in the 1962 War and never returned; and 5,180 sq km ceded to China by Pakistan in 1963.' 'It is hard to justify remaining silent about the return of China occupied Ladakh,' observes Ajay Shukla.
'There is no holistic picture of our own goals and objectives.' 'For some inexplicable reason, the decision makers find it best to listen to their inner souls in dealing with these issues rather devising a carefully thought-out, structured plan,' says Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).
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.
'Whatever I have learned, I have learned with him and through him.'
'Clearly, Washington has all but given up hope following US Acting Assistant Secretary of State Alice Wells's stormy visit to Colombo last month where she read the riot act to Sri Lankan leaders to sign the pending status of forces agreement allowing American troops to use Sri Lanka as a hub for operations in the Indian Ocean,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Mamata imposed affirmative action to the point of absurdity. This has naturally led to counter-action: The Hindus who never thought of themselves as Hindus are now banding behind the BJP, points out Aditi Phadnis.
Breath-taking manoeuvres by air force jets, a procession of tableaux presenting a glimpse of India's cultural heritage and the progress made by the country and all-women marching contingents of the three services, these are some of the attractions in store for dignitaries and guests at the Republic Day function.
'Attempts at long-term rapprochement have been rather feeble from both sides. The primary cause of the lack of progress is that these efforts do not appear to have the support of the Pakistan army,' says Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
Here are the highlights from the Lashkar terrorist's deposition on Day 4.
Officials said the 90-member Border Security Force camel-mounted troops and band contingent has not been practising during the dress rehearsals of the event.
'My brave JCO managed to get to the gun, sit on top of the dead man and fired away at the attacking aircraft till they melted away into the darkness.'
'Whatever Modi had promised us on OROP has not been delivered. He lied to us'
'But India, increasingly, is not that far behind, which is a story I never expected to tell.'
If the Taliban have proved one thing over these two decades, it is that they are way smarter than their big brother, observes Shekhar Gupta.
A pall of gloom descended on Mira Road, a township in Maharashtra as people joined the last rites of martyred Indian soldier Major Kaustabh Rane, who was martyred in Jammu-Kashmir. He was among the four army personnel killed in a gunfight with terrorists near the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir's Bandipora district on Tuesday. His family, friends and residents showered flowers, raised slogans "Major Kaustubh Rane, Amar Rahe", "Vande Mataram" and "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" as a flower-laden army truck took him to the crematorium.
akistani-American David Coleman Headley outline how the Lashkar-e-Tayiba and the Inter-Services Intelligence wanted to spread terror in India.
'Flypasts, bands, helicopters dropping flowers over hospitals treating coronavirus patients are cute ideas for an Akshay Kumar film.' 'But when lakhs of workers at the lowest rung of the employment ladder would still be walking back home, this is the true 2020 equivalent of 'let them eat cake,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
Ahluwalia is not a great fan of the Uber model.
India's military prowess and multi-hued images of the country's rich cultural diversity and achievements in various fields were on display at the majestic Rajpath on Tuesday during 67th Republic Day parade which was graced by French President Francois Hollande as the chief guest.
30 years ago, after India sent in troops to resolve a crisis in the Maldives, Ambassador B S Prakash was part of an Indian government team assigned to the islands to help the then president. This is what he discovered. A Must Read!
We must seize the opportunity provided by the COVID-19 crisis to kick-start indigenous research efforts, recommends Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
The Eastern Naval Command is all geared up to host the International Fleet Review in the Bay of Bengal off Visakhpatnam coast which begins on Wednesday, a mega event that will witness participation from nearly 50 countries.
'One hopes the younger generation sees Savarkar him for what he was and does not view him through a distorted prism.' 'This is the least one could do for someone who devoted his whole life to Indian freedom struggle, elimination of caste, succour to Dalits, and instilling of strategic culture in India,' says Lieutenant General Ashok Joshi (retd) and Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Movies, their motives and time of release make me wonder if we'll ever be able to see India as India and not a reflection of its governments, notes Sukanya Verma.
'Modi has entered blunderland as he does not understand the army. He has actually meddled with the army, which is much more damaging than the ignorance of Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh.' 'People had an impression that the BJP was different. Now it has been made very, very, plain that it is not.' 'Look at the contrast in the behaviour of the prime minister. When they burnt buses in Gujarat for an unjust demand, the prime minister addressed them in Gujarati while the army veterans were on relay hunger strike for the 74th day on that day, but no word on this from the PM.'
Few of these highly sought-after socialising and networking hubs are seeing much activity as regulars are missing in action.
Flight Lieutenant Srikant Sharma said that getting into the armed forces was a dream come true and this opportunity is an "icing on the cake".
The band's trip to Rishikesh delayed their split till 1970! This & other unheard stories...
'The Gita was propounded on a battlefield and regards the use of force to establish Dharma or righteousness, as not only legitimate but one's highest duty,' says Colonel Anil Athale (retd).
Mission Mangal has its heart in place, feels Sukanya Verma.
Once in each President's term in office, he or she carries out a "naval fleet review", a deliberately public assembly of the entire fleet.
'If the prime minister wants to be seen as a global statesman, then is it not embarrassing to be so closely associated with a gang of foul-mouthed bullies?' asks Vir Sanghvi.
India's cumbersome arms procurement procedures and a plodding Ministry of Defence bureaucracy have long been blamed for shortfalls in combat capability. Now there is another, more worrying, reason - a growing crisis of funds, magnified by the lack of tri-service coordination.
Prakash Desai, Nathan DeSai's father, said his son was depressed because his law practice was not going well.
'If somebody in your family listens more to your neighbour than you, then doesn't the fault lie with you also? This is what is happening in Kashmir.'
The 2019 election gives the Indian public the same choice: Between growth and oligarchs (or, in our case, dynasts and crony capitalists). If we chose wisely, well and good. If not, well, we have the Nehruvian Rate of Growth and massive corruption to fall back on. In a large sense, it is a choice between the India of the Lutyens elites and the Bharat of the real citizen, says Rajeev Srinivasan.
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