The Modi government finds itself in a contradiction of its own making. It has encouraged pro-Russian, Westophobic public sentiment while setting strategic policy that's exactly the opposite, points out Shekhar Gupta.
With 59 cameras, including one fixed on the dome of the Rashtrapati Bhavan, public broadcaster Doordarshan is all set to beam live every bit of action of the Republic Day parade which features a fly-past by 75 aircraft of the Indian Air Force over the iconic Rajpath.
'It's amazing how many different kinds of patriotic songs we have in our country.'
If only the Congress could rebuild on its strengths and develop a modern enough ideology, we could again be moving towards a clearer two-party political landscape, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
Ending a busy day of electioneering for the Bharatiya Janata Party in poll-bound Karnataka after back-to-back rallies, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took part in a mega roadshow in north Bengaluru on Saturday drawing an enormous response from a huge crowd.
The flight arrived at Wuhan's Tianhe International Airport on Friday evening. While the official number of students to be airlifted in the two flights is not known, Indians who reached the Wuhan airport on Friday said they were told that 374 were expected to be airlifted by the Air India flight. India has taken an undertaking from the Indians travelling in the two flights that they would be quarantined for 14 days after their arrival, besides undergoing special checks at the Wuhan airport.
Our political history tells us this has never worked. A united Opposition does work in some specific, limited situations, especially in the states. But never as some brilliant pan-national collection of diverse interests with no ideological or political core, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
India would not be seen to be anything but rude with the Pakistanis. In the big picture, who is the bigger adversary right now? Who is the bigger pain in the neck? And who is it that is keeping more than 3,000 km of our borders active, throwing our military posture and deployments into imbalance? asks Shekhar Gupta.
This is for the first time in recent history that the leaders of the two largest democracies would be addressing a joint rally anywhere in the world.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed the opening of nine special vostro accounts with two Indian lenders - Uco and IndusInd Bank - to facilitate overseas trade in rupee, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said on Tuesday. Apart from the domestic lenders, Russia's two largest banks - Sberbank and VTB Bank - are the first foreign lenders to have received approval from the central bank for settling international trade transactions in rupee. "Nine accounts have been opened. One each in Uco Bank, Sberbank, and VTB and six with IndusInd Bank. There are six different Russian banks who have opened special vostro account in IndusInd," Barthwal said.
The rumour verification process would now be triggered by changes in price or 'material price movements', as the paper defines it. What this means is that companies would need to verify rumours only if the share price moves significantly.
A police cavalcade carrying gangster-politician Atiq Ahmed left for the Sabarmati Central Jail in Gujarat on Tuesday evening, hours after he was sentenced to rigorous life imprisonment in a 2006 kidnapping case by a court in Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, a senior official said.
'If we have to restrict and fight terrorism, first and foremost, we have to ensure communal harmony in the country.'
The real risk is that the core assumption -- that the votes for a candidate sponsored by an alliance will at least equal the sum total of its parts -- proves to be facile, observes T N Ninan.
In addition to CPI workers, activists of Congress, YSR Congress and other Opposition parties, who extended support to the bandh, held rallies and other forms of protest at different places in the state.
As many as 231 Indians, including 208 Gujarat residents, who were evacuated from strife-torn African nation Sudan under the Centre's 'Operation Kaveri', landed at Ahmedabad airport on Tuesday, said a state government official.
'Indian families' needs and expectations have gone through a revolution across economic demographics.' 'As this latest Modi-Sitharaman Budget demonstrated, politicians have understood this change. They are responding to it,' points out Shekhar Gupta.
The Andhra Pradesh government has decided to make special arrangements for allowing the Friday prayers in curfew-bound areas of Hyderabad city on Friday.
The transmogrification of Prime Minister Modi to Saint Modi began with the ground-breaking ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. By identifying himself with Lord Ram, Modi raised himself in popular imagination to a saintly person.
For the first time, large display screens and consoles for participation from galleries, ultraviolet germicidal irradiation, special cables between the two Houses and polycarbonate separators will be in place.
'Even though Gandhiji did not know me well, Sardar knew and remembered me working with him till the Congress was banned.' Glimpses from the fascinating memoirs of Chakkedath Sankarankutty Menon, the stenographer who worked for Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel during the freedom struggle.
The raids were conducted a day after a special court in Mohali declared Dala a proclaimed offender in a case of conspiracy to kill a priest in Punjab, a spokesperson of the federal agency said.
Rediff readers tell us how they are celebrating Ganeshotsav this year.
Income tax office to remain open on Saturday and Sunday for those who have not yet filed their returns.
Farmers reiterated that the agitation would continue till the Centre takes back the three farm laws, and said that if need be, they could go on till 2024.
In one state, the BJP sweeps in Modi's name -- and only because of Modi's name. In the other state, Modi's name did not work. Himachal underlines the limitations of Modi's magic, observes Shekhar Gupta.
The Reserve Bank on Monday asked banks to put in place additional arrangements for export and import transactions in Indian rupees in view of increasing interest of the global trading community in the domestic currency. Before putting in place this mechanism, banks will require prior approval from the Foreign Exchange Department of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the central bank said in a circular. "In order to promote growth of global trade with emphasis on exports from India and to support the increasing interest of global trading community in INR, it has been decided to put in place an additional arrangement for invoicing, payment, and settlement of exports / imports in INR," it said.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, on Thursday, is expected to have a long day ahead at the special court in Bangalore. She may have to spend around seven hours at the Court on Thursday.
The middle class is a big force to fulfil dreams of a prosperous and developed India and our government has taken many decisions to empower it, the prime minister said.
Indian Mujahideen co-founder Yasin Bhatkal and his associate were flown to Delhi by a special plane to Patna on Friday afternoon.
Armed men barged inside a Rajasthan Roadways bus on Wednesday and shot dead a murder accused who was being escorted by a police team for a court hearing in Bharatpur, officials said.
There are three things you never do in a small North East state: Undermine local leaders, divide and rule, push homogenisation, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
The judge noted that all the convicts were in conspiracy with each other to wage war against India.
Scores of protesting Kashmiri Pandit prime minister's package employees on Monday reiterated their demand for relocation outside the valley, saying their worst fears have come true with the latest killing of a community member in Pulwama.
In Jammu and Kashmir, Eid prayers passed off peacefully and there was no report of any untoward incident, the police said.
All security arrangements are in place for the 3-day visit of US President Barack Obama beginning Sunday, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Wednesday.
Fans gathered in large numbers at the airport, outside their hotel and on both sides of the road for a glimpse of the cricketing stars.
The bench posed questions to senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for one of the petitioners Soayib Qureshi, who has challenged the Centre's August 5, 2019 decision to abrogate the provision.
Mr Modi might have questions to ask himself on the most formidable strategic challenge before India that he inherited from the United Progressive Alliance: The triangulation between China and Pakistan. The failure to break out of it, or even loosen it a bit, is something to reflect on, notes Shekhar Gupta.
The government views dropout as a barrier to achieving the new National Education Policy's aim of 100 per cent gross enrolment rate at the school level by 2030, according to officials.
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