India's decision to skip the meeting came after a year of bilateral discord over China's stubborn opposition to India's entry into the Nuclear Suppliers' Group and a UN ban against Pakistan-based terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed leader Masood Azhar.
The most serious recommendations to change the financial year came in the years preceded by deficient rainfall. The Jha committee was formed after droughts in 1979-80 and 1982-83, reports Rishika Pardikar/IndiaSpend.
India's nuclear establishment is continuing its march of folly at the expense of safety in the false belief that atomic power is the energy of the future. It's not. Nuclear power is in relentless global decline, says Praful Bidwai.
Make in India right now is just a slogan. The policy content is missing or not clearly articulated. The lion with cogs and wheels must now show some majestic movement forward, says Rahul Khullar.
If you live in Delhi you can quit smoking, give up alcohol, go to bed early, exercise every day and eat right, but unless you also give up breathing, you can still get very sick, says Mitali Saran
As the Narendra Modi government nears completing a year in office, the Congress on Wednesday stepped up its offensive against the prime minister accusing him of weakening democracy by running a "one-man show" while scoring maximum on "arrogance" and minimum on governance.
It's never to late to squeeze in a quick trip this month.
'Here in Delhi, the Modi government is supposedly looking at 'options' to hit back at Pakistan in any whichever way it can, while in Washington, the Obama administration is looking for ways to strengthen US military cooperation with Pakistan,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
An ecological disaster is in the making in the Sunderbans, the world's largest mangrove forest spanning across the Indo-Bangla border, after an oil tanker collided with an empty cargo vessel. The incident spilled nearly 350 tonnes of oil into the Sela river, threatening the survival of multiple species of flora and fauna.
President Pranab Mukherjee, the former trouble-shooter of the Congress party, may informally 'guide' the Union government in drafting the bill on the creation of Telangana.
Images of the events that shaped the world in March.
The massive earthquake in Sichuan struck at 9:19 pm (local time) on Tuesday and the epicentre was monitored at a depth of 20 km, state-run Xinhua new agency reported.
'Both reflect prejudice and short-sightedness peculiar to Mr Modi's way of thinking.'
As Modi completes a year in office, his cuts in federal welfare spending on the poorest of India's 1.25 bn people are coming in for sharp criticism.
The challenge is to convince productive sectors that a lower general rate would benefit all and remove the prevalent system of favours targeted towards narrow industry and service sector groups.
Sanjeev Nayyar suggests 16 measures by which we can tackle our unrelenting and untrustworthy neighbour.
The government must justify why we need to buy foreign reactors when we have developed up to 700 MWe unit-size pressurised heavy water reactors, a design which can be easily extended to 900 to 1000 MWe unit size. Why can't the 'Make in India' philosophy apply to indigenous nuclear reactors, more than 18 of which have been designed, built, and being operated by Indian engineers, asks Dr A Gopalakrishnan.
In anticipation of a verdict to be delivered by the International Tribunal of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague on Tuesday, China has orchestrated a worldwide campaign to defuse its findings.
'We will continue to ask why Modi and his government were benefactors to this AgustaWestland company, why within 40 days they overturned the ban?'
The Japanese prime minister's visit to the memorial in Hawaii, the spot that was bombed 75 years ago, shows that it is possible for two powerful former enemies to transcend recriminatory impulses, observes Rajaram Panda.
India's enemies be warned: The Rafale deal will bring a sea change in India's defence preparedness.
'When Sachin Tendulkar bats, no one in India cares if he is from Mumbai or if he is a Hindu or a Brahmin or whatever.' 'We just want him to win it for India.' 'The same is with Modi and the people who voted across caste and regional lines for him.' We want him to win it for India,' says Madhu A K.
Nepal's remote mountainous areas have suffered "almost total devastation" from a powerful quake that claimed over 6,300 lives, aid agencies warned even as relief slowly began to reach far-flung regions amid fresh aftershocks that kept people on edge.
To redevelop cities as 'smart', investment of at least $10 billion is required. For 100 cities, it works out to $1 trillion
'While economic ties are making incremental progress, it is in the security and strategic domains that the India-Japan synergy is more compelling,' says Dr Rajaram Panda.
With the Maharashtra government doling out pieces of the lush green Aarey forest to various utilities, the tribals living in it for generations are feeling increasingly insecure. Hepzi Anthony reports.
Rescue teams from India and 33 other countries were on Saturday asked by Nepal to leave as it prepared to launch massive operations to rehabilitate millions of uprooted victims of the devastating temblor that has killed at least 7,365 people, including 41 Indians.
Expelled BJP ideologue Prof Hari Om speaks to Pervez Majeed.
T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan on what's so fascinating about politics that books by journalists about it sell so well.
By removing Avinash Chander last week, the government has chosen to sacrifice the organisation's most potent symbol of success
India and Japan on Friday sought a peaceful solution to the territorial disputes in the strategic South China Sea, saying parties involved in the matter must not resort to "threat or use of force", in remarks that could anger China which is opposed to any outside interference.
The State must stand as a solid tower of confidence to provide a guarantee of safety to its citizens and instill fear in the hearts of offenders. But where is that State, asks Tarun Vijay
It is time to take a few macroeconomic risks to kick start the growth.
One hopes that the government will act on the Kelkar panel recommendations.
Even while the union budget may not have announced many direct schemes for Gujarat, the state has been a major beneficiary under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's first 100 days in office.
The prime minister and president stated their intention to expand defence co-operation to bolster national, regional and global security.
China sees India and Japan's 'North East Road Network Connectivity Improvement Project' as a challenge to its OBOR, says Rajaram Panda.
'When Hindus converted through inducements there was no hue and cry, but when reconversions took place, everyone cried foul. If re-conversions are bad, so are conversions.' 'Our government is not getting involved either in conversions or re-conversions. The BJP has nothing to do with it.' Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu in a candid interview.
The Afghan-India Friendship Dam, earlier known as Salma Dam, on river Chist-e-Sharif in western Herat neighbouring Iran, will irrigate 75,000 hectares of land and generate 42 MW of power.
To avert another Uttarakhand-type catastrophe, we must change course. We should stop pandering to the Indian elite's insatiable appetite for electricity, which is driving reckless dam construction, says Praful Bidwai
