This is the first deal for artillery guns since the Bofors scandal in 1980s.
'The air force continues to be short of planes.' 'So, more than a decade after the last selection round got under way, the same process is about to start again for the same kind of aircraft, naturally with the same likely bidders,' points out T N Ninan.
T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan recalls a tussle between the government and RBI when Rajiv Gandhi was prime minister and how it was resolved.
The artillery pounds targets and keeps the enemy's head down, preventing them from firing at attacking troops.
'While people complain of the difficulties they are experiencing because of the lack of currency, they remain supportive so far of Mr Modi's initiative.' 'What the country should be concerned about is the prospect of a prime minister who is willing to sacrifice economic gain and risk large-scale job losses in exchange for personal popularity,'
'There is no shortage of material for the Opposition to develop and deploy a campaign against the government.' 'Are we seeing signs that it exists? I confess that I do not see it,' says Aakar Patel.
The record of other prime ministers too shows how much can change when a prime minister is faced with the two-year challenge, says T N Ninan.
Flexible, maneuverable, mobile and swift, the M-777A2 Ultra-Light Howitzers are just what India needed to replace its aging battle-tested Bofors guns, says Debalina Ghoshal.
Arun Nehru's image of a political strategist, dealmaker and trouble shooter never allowed him to become a political leader of people, says Sheela Bhatt
'It is palpably prejudiced and totally at variance with public and historical opinion.' 'As a result, he cannot be taken seriously in other matters as well because of his penchant for playing safe,' says Amulya Ganguli.
'I had expected them to fight this election on the issue of development, but they are not doing that.' 'Now they have decided to belittle Gujarat's development.'
Currently women are allowed in a number of select areas including in medical, legal, educational, signals and engineering wings of the army.
'It is time someone told BJP leaders that they were not elected to remind people of Congress corruption. The people of India voted for Narendra Modi and the BJP because they believed that he and his party were clean, unlike the Congress-led government,' says Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
A man of perseverance and great survivor, Mufti Mohammed Sayeed had an astute political sense honed by decades of experience in Kashmir politics that has stood him in good stead in crafting a delicate alliance with Bharatiya Janata Party to return as chief minister for the second time.
Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com decodes why Modi has decided to retain her in the Union Cabinet despite this controversy and their many internal differences.
'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).
'The BJP suddenly seems vulnerable. This is not entirely surprising. In the past too, governments and leaders who won a thumping Lok Sabha majority lost popularity in a matter of months... The by-polls results shows that a degree of disenchantment with the Modi government is setting in,' says Praful Bidwai.
Sunday's results may be a bitter pill that the Congress has to swallow -- that its future cannot be hitched to Rahul unless he can resonate with the people, feels Saroj Nagi.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances