If as critics point out, the environmental impact assessment study was commissioned only after the auction process got underway with not all the stakeholders getting to know of it, then the government has already compromised the trust it could have enjoyed with Kerala's public including its coastal communities, points out Shyam G Menon.
'Does 99 percent guarantee character and capacity for an independent awareness of life or does it make you -- barring exceptions -- a compliant careerist beholden to governments and corporations?' 'What kind of political and social choices would such minds make?' asks Shyam G Menon.
Trump's sweeping tariffs and penalties on China-built ships have turned global shipping into the front line of economic war, observes Shyam G Menon.
I have never forgotten the lesson that Guruji served up with the tea that morning: Be kind encouraging and patient with fresh starters. Subhash K Jha mourns the passing of Pritish Nandy.
Ask rediffGURU and PF expert Milind Vadjikar your insurance, stocks, mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
In Kerala's society, known for its high material standard of living, plunging into a state of having nothing overnight can be terrible for one's social standing and sense of self-esteem. Rehabilitation entails piecing a community back together after a disturbance and while its aim is noble, the act of reassembling will bring alive disparities and inequalities, explains Shyam G Menon.
Six persons, most of whom have criminal past, have been arrested for allegedly robbing and killing a freelance television journalist from Uttar Pradesh in broad daylight here last week, police said on Wednesday.
The $22.8 billion CK Hutchison ports deal intensifies geopolitical tensions between the US and China. Chinese media has already called it 'a betrayal of all Chinese people'. Shyam G Menon explains how the proposed sale will reshapes global trade infrastructure.
Bisht used the fake profiles to connect with women aged between 18 and 30 years on various onlione dating platforms.
'Can we give young India the tools to solve the problems the country or society faces and uplift the community?'
In the months immediately following the 2024 tragedy, reporting on the landslide per se had been a straightforward affair. On one side was death and destruction. On the other side, survivors and the business of survival. It was black and white. What direction to take was clear. Rehabilitation in comparison, felt like a complex situation. One that is fraught with shades of grey. As grey as human life, explains Shyam G Menon.
It was a protest which held a mirror to the government of a state taking pride in its commitment to democracy, gender equality and social indices.One person, who in his employed days had known governments and political parties at close quarters, told me that public perception of how the Kerala government handled the ASHA workers' strike had been terrible, reports Shyam G Menon.
Disconnected terror attacks make the subsequent probe tougher for investigators, as they often don't find a pattern to crack the case, says Vicky Nanjappa
The Kerala unit of the Congress instantly gets a headache when Shashi Tharoor lets loose one of his observations showering flowers on enemy territory. With every such action triggering controversy within a nervous Congress party, some feel it is high time Tharoor showed a degree of solidarity with the ideals of his party, notes Shyam G Menon.
By acting now, you can step into 2025 with your finances in order and without unnecessary penalties.
Ask rediffGURU and PF and MF expert Janak Patel your mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
The US is currently Earth's most powerful country and a certain latitude of understanding -- a world view -- is popularly expected from its leadership. From a country identified with freedom, constitution, debate, democracy and the likes of Abraham Lincoln even as it had the most powerful military around, the US, following Trump's actions, seemed repositioned as militarily powerful with other qualities secondary, observes Shyam G Menon.
'Suddenly we had a new comprehension of affairs, which reminded that the luxury of politics floated atop a foundation by economics.' 'Along with this, finance ministers became crucial in molding the perception and reputation of Union Cabinets.' 'Governments couldn't afford a wrong person in that portfolio,' asserts Shyam G Menon.
rediffGURU Krishna Kumar, founder and CEO of GoMoTech, offers expert advice on how to scale up in your career and life.
Freelancers, our modern day lone rangers, Bedouins of the working world -- how do they survive? Do they save? Do they have regular work? Here's a small peak into what you can do as a freelancer and how people are already doing it.
Kashmira Pardeshi's wardrobe is part saccharine sweet, part edgy, part flirty.
Shah Rukh Khan is all set to star with his daughter Suhana in a film to be directed by Sujoy Ghosh.
The eulogies will pour for Ustad Zakir Hussain. There will be those who recount his genius, his enterprise, his achievements, his grace, and his charm. I have no selfies or autographs to remember him by, but I will never forget his most generous and gracious gift to me -- one day in heaven, among the celestial ensemble of Indian music.
Yuvraj played for Mumbai Indians in this year's IPL but didn't get many chances which might have prompted him to seriously think about future plans.
Self-employed individuals often face hurdles in buying term insurance due to financial documentation that doesn't fully reflect their earnings. This complicates underwriting.
Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad was at his humorous best in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday when he said he was a "freelancer" for Congress for ten years. Prasad, who fought the polls as part of the Fourth Front, said it was not because of Congress but for the people's support that he was sitting here with only four members.
Australian skipper Ricky Ponting expects more cricketers to follow Andrew Flintoff and Andrew Symonds in going freelance.
Ask rediffGURU and PF expert Nitin Narkhede your mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
'As we enter 2025, it must be acknowledged that there is a convergence of capital, influential people (from business and politics) and technology deciding the destiny of others in the name of pride, patriotism, nationalism, nation building, all of it thinly veiled disguises for personal profit and glory,' asserts Shyam G Menon.
'The determination to represent our country is strong when you've seen your dad serve the country.'
There were certainly qualities adhering to the Tata Group, which emanated from the persona of Ratan Tata. Most notable of these would be the low profile he maintained, which sharply contrasted the in-your-face celebrity status, celebration of wealth and pursuit of importance many of liberalised India's rich, love, notes Shyam G Menon.
Service sector and employees alike are embracing the gig economy in India.
I am happy I didn't knock anyone down, driving recklessly or trying to show off. However, in one instance of road rage (the consequence of arguing with a driver who disrespected my right to cross the road peacefully) I did find a man in a SUV taking his anger out on me by driving his vehicle over my feet, recalls Shyam G Menon.
'It is not that employee work is not happening if you don't see it.'
There is a definite attempt to put the landslides on the backburner because news of them and climate change worry Wayanad's tourism and real estate businesses greatly. Whatever I experienced of Wayanad's 2024 by-elections; the July landslides were not a burning issue, observes Shyam G Menon.
The specter of how the Munambam issue was exploited during the November by-elections is proof of the price Kerala is paying for its emergent politics. Controversies become the stuff of slow-burn and brinkmanship. The former promises mileage; the latter searches for an advantage, notes Shyam G Menon.
Delhi-based Shubham Chakraborty, 32, a management graduate from XLRI, Jamshedpur, tells us how he fought anxiety and stress due to poor workplace management.
Taiwan supporters celebrated their country's first gold medal at the Paris Games on Sunday during a badminton doubles final that took place without their national flag.
When the landslide hit, Sruthi's house was washed away, along with its inhabitants. She lost her entire family and some relatives. All she had left for a close confidante was her fiance Jenson. Days after the landslide and the loss of her family, Jenson died in a road accident that also left Sruthi with serious injuries. News of the accident and Sruthi's backdrop as the lone surviving member of a family wiped out in the July landslide, was picked up by the media, and people rushed to help.
There are few leaders in the Opposition line up who can claim a path to party leadership like Sitaram Yechury and certainly, very few who blended that ascent through student politics with awareness about non-elite real India, urban India and liberal politics, as he did, notes Shyam G Menon.