'The COVID-19 pandemic must push the military into a long-term reconsideration of its primary challenges.' 'There must be greater emphasis on humanitarian aid and disaster relief including the management of contagious illnesses and impending crises caused by climate change,' notes Ajai Shukla.
The Congress for its part urged Modi not to politicise the armed forces.
Indian Railways need a facelift, says Suresh Prabhu.
The FT report said the existence, size and investments of the highly profitable internal trading fund, which was set up three decades ago, have until now remained largely unknown outside a circle of former and current insiders.
The protection of individual security and privacy is critical to building safe online systems, say Mitchell Baker and Ankit Gadgil.
At a time when the Modi government is attempting to push cashlessness with coercive means, Devangshu Datta explains why cash usage is popular even in nations with good cashless infrastructure.
'UBI is a tricky subject.' 'Our worry is the government could get rid of UPA's social welfare schemes targeted at the poor.'
Modi, who was in France on the first leg of his three-nation tour, said there have been a number of constructive changes in the last five years.
The govt hiked defence budget by 7.81 per cent over last year's Rs 2.74 lakh crore.
'There is no money with the villagers as there is little work.'
How could India@75 improve law and order, courts, social, physical and soft infrastructure, efficient cities, e-governance, ease of doing business and other essential state functions by 2022, asks Shailesh Pathak.
Millions voted in the United Kingdom on Thursday in the country's closest polls in decades as Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative Party and opposition Labour were locked in a dead heat electoral battle with migrant voters, including the Indian diaspora, expected to be the deciding factor.
'An era of fiscal pessimism is setting in, which, if not countered intellectually, is going to have the same effect as export pessimism has had,' notes T C A Srinivasa Raghavan.
A second vote will be held on Wednesday, on measures including justice and banking reforms, when a similar outcome is expected.
'It is the government's most important duty to ensure that when war breaks out, the armed forces are absolutely ready to face the adversary -- well equipped, well trained and in high spirits,' says Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presented the Union Budget.
'The Jharkhand government is increasingly intolerant of voices of dissent.' 'Recently 20 persons, including activists, writers and academics, were booked for sedition.' 'Many of them have been critical of the government's apathy towards Adivasis,' notes Siraj Dutta.
'For the first month, we have only had 5.5 million who have paid the tax.' '40 per cent have paid nil as tax; 95 per cent of the taxation for the first two months has come from only 400,000 assessees.' 'So even now, the tax-paying habit, of paying a marginal or negligible amount, or not paying anything at all, is quite prevalent,' reveals Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
Here are some of the best photos from around the world in the month gone by...
'They want (the ownership and management of PSU banks) to pass into the hands of a private sector entity.' 'Ownership of these banks will go from the public sector to private sector.'
In a recent lecture, RBI governor Raghuram Rajan dished out some frank advice -- don't get into 'jugaad', instead try for the long haul. Only that will sustain in the long-run.
Reaching out to different sections of society, including farmers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said the well-being of 'annadaata' is a priority for the government
'Well done, Mr Jaitley, now go and implement your schemes. No leakages, no lapses and no laziness.'
'The government must understand that the Indian Railways is like a Kamdhenu cow. It can look after your GDP, it can look after the health of the nation. But the Kamdhenu cow also needs nourishment.' 'You have not at all looked after the Indian Railways, you have ill treated the Indian Railways, you have mistreated the Indian Railways and you have given the Indian Railways step motherly treatment.' 'I don't think this government has understood the Indian Railways.'
Energy Minister Panagiotis Lafazanis and Deputy Labour Minister Dimitris Stratoulis also voted against the package.
Only Rs 3,000 cr has been disbursed. Over 80% of these transfers were for cooking gas subsidy.
Trump said that his proposal should be supported by both parties (Republican and Democratic) as a fair compromise -- one where nobody gets everything they want, but where the country gets the critical reforms it needs.
energy is India's binding supply-side constraint for inclusive growth.
'Is it time to think beyond the traditional questionnaire-based approach in India?' asks Atanu Biswas.
The NCLT said the new board must hold its meeting by October 8 and come out with a road map before the next hearing on October 31
Not only is your privacy stripped stark naked, says Mitali Saran, the system itself is illegal and vulnerable.
"I want to know from the Congress as to why it is agitated and telling lies repeatedly. Is it because there is no Quattrocchi mama or Christian Michel in defence deals done by the BJP government," Modi said.
'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.'
The government scheme has a long way to go before its ultimate goals of universal financial inclusion and financial literacy are achieved.
Jim Rogers' decision not to invest now is not India-specific, but has to do with the problems relating to how the major global economies are shaping up.
The government plans a mega launch of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 28, which is likely to see opening of one crore bank accounts on the first day itself.
The states will be asked to tap the Centre's JAM trinity.
Following is the full text of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address from the ramparts of the Red Fort on the 73rd Independence Day.
'The high court notice could go some way in easing the vitiated civil-military relationship, and the trust deficit between civil servants and the military.'
It raises three major questions - the incentive compatibility issue, the fairness issue and fiscal challenge, said Panagariya.
