'Gandhi turned his life into a counter-intuitive experiment in old ideas like non-violence and swadeshi.' 'He offered numerous universal ideas that talk to the human condition.' 'His ability to take risks was outstanding,' says Sopan Joshi, explaining why the Mahatma's ideas are as relevant as ever.
Teachers across universities are questioning the "thoughtlessness, rushed manner and opacity" of the process in which the UGC announced the introduction of the choice-based credit system across universities in the country.
Bharati Dutt witnessed life-changing events that shaped India on the threshold of freedom. Her memories are an account of how ordinary Indians saw India change.
'... That they should emerge as role-models to be emulated by the fellow countrymen; and that the middle classes should not stick only to hate-filled and scornful criticism and condemnation against the state of affairs,' remembers Mohammad Sajjad.
Air Commodore Nitin Sathe discovers how the IAF trained Pakistani air force pilots, during the 1971 War, which led to the birth of the Bangladesh air force.
Indian author Amitav Ghosh is among a group of award-winning writers and poets to make the longlist of Warwick Prize for Writing in London on Wednesday.
'Like everyone else addicted to Kremlin politics, I too have a thesis.' 'Foreign policy is known to be Putin's forte -- and Russia's stability his obsession.' 'As we enter the 2020s, it is clear that an extraordinary turbulent decade lies ahead in world politics and it casts dark shadows on Russia's future,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Overseas education consultant NNS Chandra shares advice on how to pick the right international education.
WhatsApp said it would be instituting awards for research on 'spread of misinformation' on its platform.
Yet another round of talks on Tuesday failed to end the standoff between the government and FTII students over the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan as its Chairman, with the students alleging "unwillingness or inability" of the authorities to act upon their core concerns.
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached the White House for the private dinner hosted by President Barack Obama, India and the US on Monday issued a vision statement "Chalein Saath Saath: Forward Together We Go" that called for a joint endeavour for prosperity and peace.
The 'bumbling liberal' and the 'neo-fascist' are two sides of the same coin. Neither has place in a moderate India, says Nikhil Inamdar
'You tell me without support, can the ABVP do these things? They are only doing these things because the central government is supporting them.'
'Is the agenda of the RSS according to the Constitution of India? They talk of Hindu Raj, Hindutva. Is this Constitutional?'
Describing the just concluded United States visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as extraordinarily successful, the White House has said that his meeting with President Barack Obama has re-energised the strategic relationship between the two largest democracies of the world.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered an impassioned speech to the United States Congress.
It is ironic that Raja Mahendra Pratap's Jat connection is being used for vote bank politics. He could not have cared less for his caste.' 'He was aware of the hold caste had on people's lives, and always rose above this kind of narrow thinking.' 'He mentions that once when he landed at Dwarka the priests asked him about his caste. He replied that he was a sweeper. The priests denied him entry. "I did not care to visit it," he writes, "when it was surrounded by people who had no regard for humanity".'
The year is coming to an end and overall, it's been one hell of a year! We have had our share of ups and downs and we look forward to a better 2020. While we count down the days to the new year, let's also reflect on those who gave us strength to stand up in what we believe, the courageous who didn't bow down and the ones with gumption who inspired us to be better. We, Rediff.com, have selected 26 personalities, who we think are worthy of the title -- HERO OF THE YEAR -- and we want you, dear readers, to choose your hero!
Members in the Rajya Sabha had sought the government's intervention in resolving the protests by JNU students by advising the university authorities to reconsider its decision to severely penalise some of them.
'The change of vocabulary in the India-US conversation was significant and refreshing.' 'It matched the styles of Trump and Modi.' 'The differences were not papered over, but there was determination to resolve them in the days ahead,' says Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
September 12 marked the 122th anniversary of one of the most incredible battles in Indian history.
'We have 100,000 students going abroad every year.' 'So, we have room for at least 100 universities of very high quality to service those 100,000 students.'
Historians say the coastal state had witnessed a number of minor and major struggles against foreign powers even before the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny, which has so far been regarded as the first war of Indian Independence.
'His contributions in setting up transparent precedents of governance are still basically intact despite the cynicism of several of his successors,' notes Jamini Bhagwati.
Here's the full text of President Ram Nath Kovind's customary address to the joining sitting of Parliament on the first day of the budget session.
Pune police on Tuesday raided homes of prominent Left-wing activists in several states and arrested at least five of them -- poet Varavara Rao in Hyderabad, activists Vernon Gonzalves and Arun Ferreira in Mumbai, trade unionist and lawyer Sudha Bhardwaj in Faridabad and Chhattisgarh and civil liberties activist Gautam Navalakha in Delhi.
'Shaheen Bagh is no longer a mere ghetto of lower middle class Muslims.' 'Now, it is a metaphor for resistance, secularism and struggle,' notes Md. Zeeshan Ahmad.
Bhat recently used the 'face-swap' feature on Snapchat to imitate cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and then singer Lata Mangeshkar.
A recent academic paper on probability theory shows how beliefs are influenced by interpretations of data rather than the data itself, says T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan.
The list of corporations publishing biographies has lengthened steadily as companies have realised the effectiveness of story telling as a brand building tool. Kanika Datta investigates the rising trend.
'My wife has done everything... She has had to give up a lot,' HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar tells Sahil Makkar.
Here's the full text of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the United States Congress.
'Tipu Sultan was no doubt a valiant fighter who vigorously opposed the British, but that cannot mitigate the fact that he was also by all accounts a religious bigot -- a figure incompatible with modern secular times,' says Vivek Gumaste.
The Sindhis are a lesson in perseverance. Once uprooted, they've started all over, often reinventing themselves
Former Watson Fellow and social entrepreneur Srikar Gullapalli talks about the issues affecting India's growth and tells us why he wants more people to actively participate in building a bright future and put India on the global map.
'On a new kidney, her immune system still getting used to it, she took on the Pakistanis at the UN, held meetings with her counterparts from across the world, and presented a picture of incredible poise and dignity,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
'India appears to have stood its ground on strategic autonomy by resisting US pressure on Russia, China and Iran, but succumbed to the temptation to walk into a tighter embrace in defence cooperation, a high priority of the Trump administration,' notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
N Sathiya Moorthy goes back in time to dig up three cases that may not have any citation in legal text-books or lawyers' ready-reckoners quoted before courts but which may still have a bearing on the current case against the arrested activists.
Before the situation in the Naxal-affected areas got out of hand, the Raman Singh government intervened to calm tempers between the police and human rights activists.
