Nitin Gokhale reports on how quick decisions saved a repeat of a Mumbai-like carnage at the key Punjab air force base.
Ahead of the crucial talks between President Barack Obama and his Afghan counterpart Ashraf Ghani, the United States has indicated flexibility in its troop drawdown schedule from war-torn Afghanistan to help it fight the Taliban and other insurgent groups.
'He is still compulsively an operations man. Just a whiff of a live operation, and he is back in the field, at least in his mind. That is why the immediate decision to send the NSG to Pathankot.' 'But there is a difference between classical intelligence or counter-terror operation and dealing with a larger threat to a place as sensitive and sprawling as an air force base. This is what led to confusion and mix-ups,' says Shekhar Gupta.
The government must undo the damage inflicted by the flawed policies of globalisation, and India should be converted into a country where entrepreneurs can thrive and the entire population can participate in the economy, says Arvind Kumar.
'I would not be running had it not been for the army.' 'I learned to value my time only after I was posted in Kashmir.' 'I was posted there for three months. In those three months I learned everything about life.'
With the threat of disease outbreak lurking in flood-ravaged Jammu and Kashmir, efforts have been initiated on a war-footing to provide medical staff and medicines even as rescue operations were slightly hampered on Sunday due to return of rains in the Valley.
The main culprit in vitiating the inter community/caste/class relations has been the so called 'targeted' approach. This is nothing but discrimination on the basis of faith/caste/class. When an equally poor and deprived child is denied scholarship, despite equal merit, resentment begins to brew, says Colonel (retd) Anil Athale.
'When the national anthem is played it has to be played for 52 seconds.' 'It is mandatory. It is in the law.' 'One or two seconds here and there is fine when kids sing. But you cannot deliberately stretch the national anthem by singing in long aalaps.'
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.
Smuggling and crime are everyday instances. The 70,000 people in villages along the border make the going tough for the BSF. Neelabh Srivastava reports
WWhat Pakistan faces in the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan is virulent insurgency and terrorism, fuelled by its association with Al Qaeda
'According to me, her finest hour was in 1983-1984 when she neutralised a combined US-Pakistan-British conspiracy to Balkanise India by creating an independent Sikh State of Khalistan,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd). A special assessment of Indira Gandhi on her centenary.
'Vietnam has become an adjective as well as a verb -- the Americans, for instance, were driven by the passion to do a 'Vietnam' on the Soviet Union when that country invaded Afghanistan in 1979.'
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
India is no longer shying away from playing a role on the regional and international stages and is willing to don a bigger role in regional politics. It is showing traits of a responsible stakeholder in the regional security dynamics, says Dr Rahul Mishra.
'Feeling claustrophobic and humiliated by the manner in which the Congress vice-president was treating him, he started toying with the idea of floating his own party.'
Saeed Jaffrey lives on through his versatile body of work.
What should concern the Indian citizen is not the fact that the world's biggest assault rifle purchase was scrapped. What should is the fact that the tender was for a type of rifle that has never been produced, says Nitin Pai.
'She has to get the funds, cut through bureaucratic flab, speed up modernisation, ensure planned acquisitions stick to timelines, make organisational changes and ensure the military is capable of performing the task that it is given,' says Brigadier S K Chatterjee (retd).
Football news from Ligue 1, Bundesliga and La liga.
Deras like Sacha Sauda made the poor feel secure, cared for, loved, provided a support system and gave them dignity, says Sanjeev Nayyar.
'Ensuring through diplomatic means and in conjunction with strategic partners that India will not be required to fight a simultaneous two-front war with China and Pakistan.' Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd) lists what India must have in its national security strategy.
Amongst those who heard the message of the Bihar results would be Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, whose realm is simultaneously the country's most complex and -- when something goes wrong -- the most emotive, says Ajai Shukla.
'The interests of the United States and India are sharply aligned on the issue of Pakistan-based terrorism.'
Accusing the Congress and third front of fuelling instability, Narendra Modi on Tuesday sought a clear-cut mandate, appealing to voters to give National Democratic Alliance at least 300 seats in the Lok Sabha polls for providing a strong and stable government at the Centre.
'I want tonight to express gratitude to all the women who have endured years of abuse and assault because they, like my mother, had children to feed and bills to pay and dreams to pursue.' Stirring speeches at the 75th Golden Globes.
Of the 27 projects being monitored, four to five are critical for Mumbai.
The roots of the problem lies in the alienation of the tribals. Extreme sensitivity is required to tackle the issues involved. Rough and ready methods of using force may prove counterproductive in the long run, says Colonel (retd) Anil Athale.
'It is a very hard won situation that the army has brought about in J&K in 25 years, we don't want to fritter it away...' 'By 2010-2012 the terrorist strength had come down to 300, 400. From a high of 3,000 to 4,000 to 300 to 400 was no mean achievement for the army,' says Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
Aseem Chhabra lists the top 10 films at the recent Toronto International Film Festival.
Hollande will be arriving in Chandigarh on January 24 where he is expected to be received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Bollywood's fortunes might not hinge on Pakistani actors and singers, but the forced ban on them sends out a disturbing message.
'After more than 20 years of understanding, nothing much seems to have been achieved. What the two countries have been trying to do is to manage the recurrence of border incursions. The two sides must address the disease, and not the symptom of the disease,' says Rup Narayan Das.
Here's the full text of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the United States Congress.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said Australia will not be at the periphery of India's vision but at the centre of its thought, as he called for closer bilateral security cooperation and a comprehensive global strategy to tackle the menace of terrorism.
Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Friday said he will sign an agreement with India to sell uranium for non-weapon use. "Prime Minister Modi and I will today sign a nuclear cooperation agreement that will finally allow Australian uranium to India," he said while addressing a meeting, organised by industry chambers including CII and Ficci.
An array of Olympians and stars of sports niche and new arrive in the South Korean city of Incheon for the 17th Asian Games this month, bringing together some 10,000 athletes for a 16-day multi-sport spectacular second only in scale to the Summer Olympics.
India must present its demands of America confidently, instead of fearing that its pocket will somehow be picked, says Ajai Shukla.
While the Rafale deal seems to be the main order of business during French President Francois Hollande's visit, other aspects could help sweeten the deal, says Claude Arpi.
India's secular democracy remains mortgaged to rabid communal politics. Quite clearly, the bloodshed by the religious communities is absolutely political. Even non-BJP political formations have their own Narendra Modis, says Mohammad Sajjad.
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