The emperor has no political power, yet he enjoys a unique place in Japanese society, notes Dr Rajaram Panda.
RailYatri offers a host of travel-related services to a 4.5 million user base. Shine Jacob finds out what's next for the app.
'The Opposition has no option but to make it an 'All versus One' fight to even think about winning.'
With the Apollo Hospitals chairman saying that she has recovered, the party can go back to business as usual.
'I am hopeful of getting all six seats from Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur, either for the BJP or with our allies.' 'The same is true about Meghalaya.' 'We will have to work hard in Mizoram and in Tripura.' 'In Assam, we won seven seats. In 2019 election, we will add to this number.'
Following is the full text of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address from the ramparts of the Red Fort on the 73rd Independence Day.
Here's your weekly dose of stories that are weird, true and funny!
'If your paper writes something you don't agree with, will you criticise it?' Nitin Gadkari asks Aditi Phadnis when quizzed about demonetisation.
'Attempts at long-term rapprochement have been rather feeble from both sides. The primary cause of the lack of progress is that these efforts do not appear to have the support of the Pakistan army,' says Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
'Modi as chief minister did a superb job of rehabilitation after the Kutch earthquake of 2001. He can use that hard-earned expertise for the benefit of the people of Kashmir too -- but only if they let him do so,' says T V R Shenoy.
Is it just the glamour?
"This wasn't an attack over meat. He has been killed in the name of religion. This is a pre-planned, cold-blooded killing. It cannot be an accident," said Owaisi.
'340 films have been shot in Rajasthan in the last 50 years.' 'The Rajput community has never opposed any film except for Jodhaa-Akbar and Padmavati.' 'Rajasthan is known for welcoming guests, but why did these two films get into trouble?' 'They got into trouble because these two filmmakers wanted to create a controversy.'
India needs to come up with new ideas to make the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas more appealing to overseas Indians. The Diasporas talents should be used for the country's development, says Thomas Abraham, founder of the Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin
'It is still God's own country. Nobody needs to worry about coming here. Anybody can come to Kerala without worry because bad elements will be kicked out of the state mercilessly... These terrorists visited many places and not only Kerala,' says Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala, reacting to the fears that Kerala has become a terror hub.
We have brought about a slew of reforms that would help improve governance and also facilitate industrial growth, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje tells Sahil Makkar.
Several people, including an Indian techie, were taken hostage by an armed man at a popular caf in Sydney and forced to display an Islamic flag, triggering a security alert in Australia and leading to evacuation of key buildings, including the Indian Consulate.
She needs to find innovative ways to at least match the growth during Gehlot's rule.
The two countries have decided to expedite trade related issues and signed six pacts to take forward their strategic partnership. Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt, who is travelling with the prime minister on his visit to Indonesia, reports from Jakarta.
Opposition on Monday picked holes in various government decisions like demonetisation and surgical strikes as well as allocation of funds for MNREGA, agriculture sector and Scheduled Castes, saying it has failed on all fronts despite which it is trying to "fool" the people.
'The creation of Pakistan was integral to Britain's grand strategy.' 'If they were to ever leave India, Britain's military planners had made it clear that they needed to retain a foothold in the NWFP and Baluchistan because that would provide the means to retain control of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain and Qatar.'
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
The impending default on the IMF loans leaves Greece sliding towards an exit from the euro.
Here's a round up of some information the nation learnt from Parliament on Tuesday.
Aditya Thackeray may want Mumbai's shops and restaurants to remain open 24x7 but the Maharashtra government won't be okaying it in a hurry, says Neeta Kolhatkar.
'I've answered all those people who are tweeting nonsense about Varnika Kundu and trying to shame her.' 'Shame her for what? For being a young girl at a party with friends? For enjoying herself?' 'I think it is ridiculous for somebody to say that she should not be out at night.' 'Why should a girl not step out at night?' 'What does that mean?' 'Does it mean that something happens to the boys at night and they change into monsters?' 'If so, then the problem lies with the boys, not with the girls.' 'Please keep your sons at home at night.' 'Why are you telling girls where to go and what to do?'
'Understand one thing, if you want immediately and magically that things should become cheap, it's not possible. It's a long-term policy.' 'Inflation is linked to the storage system and with the production system. Whenever production rises, prices go lower. So if we store when the prices are low and release them when prices rise, prices can be maintained.' 'The problem is that in our country fruits and vegetables worth Rs 110,000 crore go to waste as they rot. And grains worth Rs 85,000 crore rot. So the storage system is another big reason for inflation.' Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari in an exclusive interaction with Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com
'Consider this image of today's youth in Bihar -- armed with a bike, a smartphone and possibly some illegal arms too, imbibing incessant stream of images from the Internet and television.' 'Some of them would turn into gau bhakts, some would listen with interest the exploits of Salafism, dig deep into the Internet to come out with images which cry vociferously that their respective religions are in danger.'
Everyone wants a piece of the Taj Mahal, but do they care about the deteriorating condition of India's best-loved monument
Once again an Indian prime minister has realised that with Pakistan and China, things will not move as he wishes.
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Ayurvedic expert Dr G G Gangadharan on how the ancient Indian medical practice needs to be propagated in the country of its origin
The new ordinance on land acquisition will allow land grabbers to deprive millions, destroy agriculture, horticulture, rivers, forests, tree cover and mangroves to extract minerals as well as ground water, without replenishment at a pace that will not leave anything for the next generation, warns activist Medha Patkar.
President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday addressed the first joint sitting of Parliament as mandatorily required under the Constitution after the general elections. The address is the political, economic and foreign policy road map of the Narendra Modi government and covers virtually all crucial areas.
'If the Kasturirangan Committee report is implemented, the mining and quarrying lobbies will flourish... It will be disastrous for the environment... There will be water shortage, there will be pollution. Finally, farmers will have to quit the area.' Dr V S Vijayan, a member of the Gadgil Committee, points out how the Kasturirangan Committee report will hit both people living in the Western Ghats as well as the plains.
'I can tell you, Mr Chairman, from personal experience that there is nothing sadder than witnessing a close one, a loved one with mental illness at close quarters.' 'I have lived with a victim of mental illness. Like many in that condition, very often such people are in a state of denial.'
Indian economy about to take-off
Maharashtra Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar speaks to Prasanna Zore/Rediff.com.
