Railways must pull back its share of freight traffic.
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.
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The anger against land acquisition is not only among landowners.
Purvi Patel is the first woman in America to be sentenced to prison for foeticide. Chaya Babu/Rediff.com reports on the verdict and the ripples of shock and fear it set off.
'He should bring in a working president from outside the family.'
'Both reflect prejudice and short-sightedness peculiar to Mr Modi's way of thinking.'
One solution to India's challenges of education, employment, employability lies in state governments adopting apprenticeships on a large scale.
'Indira Gandhi proved herself a great war leader, but failed as a statesman,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Once called India's garden city, this upper middle-class residential area in Bangalore has India's most toxic air, says Devanik Saha, IndiaSpend.com.
'The Budget has maintained fiscal prudence while announcing a number of steps to boost growth, particularly in infrastructure and rural sectors.'
Agricultural incomes can be taxed without hurting farmers, as a substantial section - the small and marginal ones - will remain outside the tax net simply because their incomes are likely to be below the basic exemption limit of Rs 250,000 per annum that is extended to all taxpayers in India, finds out Ishan Bakshi.
With facts and figures, the CAG report has highlighted how Gujarat was far from a role model for states across India, and that the progress made in this province in western India in improving agriculture, education, healthcare and empowerment of women and children, was not exactly creditable, says Paranjoy Guha Thakurta.
The former McKinsey India head is presently on board of many big Indian conglomerates.
'The execution has been 100 per cent faulty.' 'The scheme is also a stupid one, a real Tuglaq Darbar scheme.' 'This way of attacking black money is the most ineffective one.'
Uttarakhand was a tragedy that none of us will forget. As experts analysed the tragedy, it became clear that the disaster was more man made. The intergovernmental panel on climate change in its Assessment Report 5 states that human influence on the climate system is clear and this is evident from the increasing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere, positive radiative forcing, observed warming, and understanding of the climate system.
The Indian Army and more recently the Indian Navy have already set up dedicated intelligence branches. It is surprising indeed that the IAF, where real time and timely intelligence is most vital for effective and safe prosecution of the air war, has still not done so itself, says Group Capt (retd) P I Muralidharan.
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently extended a Rs 8,000-crore (Rs 80 billion) central support for building roads in Jammu & Kashmir, Union Cabinet's approval for the big-ticket announcement came in barely 48 hours.
'Many sepoys fought with distinction, winning some of the first Victoria Crosses to be awarded to Indians; and indeed, as in any army fighting under such inhumane conditions -- standing in the freezing sludge, with shrapnel tearing through bodies and being subjected to gas attacks -- some buckled under pressure.'
Stating that India's entry into Nuclear Suppliers Group will "shake strategic balance in South Asia and even cast a cloud over peace and stability in the entire Asia-Pacific region", an article in the state-run 'Global Times' however said China could support India's inclusion in the 48 member nuclear club if it "played by rules".
A delayed monsoon and abundant cotton in the international market could spell trouble in the state's suicide zone.
James Wilson tracks down discrepancies in the much-hailed demonetisation policy and the subsequent statements of the government and the Reserve Bank of India.
Our large military requirements make for an enormous buyer's leverage, which the defence ministry fritters away in piecemeal purchases
A major criticism of the new law is that it can become an instrument of abuse as it confers the tax enforcement authorities with strong discretionary powers, says Paranjoy Guha Thakurta.
Moving ahead with their new mantra -- Chalein Saath Saath: Forward Together We Go -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi and United States President Barack Obama on Tuesday vowed to deepen cooperation in every sector for the benefit of global stability and people's livelihoods over the next ten years.
A report submitted by the consortium of seven Indian Institutes of Technology on way to rejuvenate the Ganga river is at heart of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ambitious plan to restore the glory of the river.
'J&K continues to have the highest concentration of military personnel anywhere in the world and the alienation of the Kashmiri has increased in the last ten years than ever before.'
Progress on several parameters creates a tipping point situation.
Drones are being sold by e-retailers like Flipkart and Snapdeal for less than Rs 40,000 apiece.
With nearly a million identified slums, UP urgently requires housing for the poor
More lucrative routinely prescribed drugs are at higher risk of failing quality standards
Admittedly, EVMs too have a UID number and any convergence of data can make the secret ballot system a party of history, warns Dr Gopal Krishna in the 5th part of his series against Aadhaar.
'There is tension between the zones all the time.'
The two countries have decided to expedite trade related issues and signed six pacts to take forward their strategic partnership. Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt, who is travelling with the prime minister on his visit to Indonesia, reports from Jakarta.
'The BJP is not the party it was 10 years ago. It has changed. It is emerging like the Congress.' 'Sometimes, I feel the BJP has taken the Congress' space.' 'Its politics is also resembling the Congress.'
'He is anything but astute or charismatic. He believes the Congress can win elections without alliances in the Hindi heartland.'
The euphoria of Ab Ki Baar Modi Sarkar will fade quickly if the Modi government does not raise its game, and focus significant monetary resources and managerial skills on making India's infrastructure truly world-class, says Ram Kelkar.
Biometric authentication is based on the unscientific and questionable assumption that there are parts of human body that does not age, wither and decay with the passage of time.
Sanjeev Khanna stepped out of his usual sort of absent-minded personality to actively 'log into' the hearing, following the testimony alertly, at times standing up in the accused box to catch all of what was being said. His co-accused Peter Mukerjea and Indrani Mukerjea were less attentive, but were not switched off either.
'The Opposition has no option but to make it an 'All versus One' fight to even think about winning.'
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