A wise politician would disarm his critics, try to take them along, co-opt them, or, at least, take the criticism in his stride. Developing a thick skin ought to be an essential part of any politician's toolkit, notes Virendra Kapoor.
'By 2020 around 34% of India's population will be in the 15-34 age group.' 'More than 70% of them live in rural areas.' 'Their energy and enthusiasm need to be tapped in order to meet their aspirations and transform agriculture and the rural economy,' says P K Joshi.
The Aam Aadmi Party government's first 100 days in power in Delhi have been a mixed bag
Rahul said the poor, the labourers and the middle class are being sacrificed in the demonetisation 'yajna' for the benefit of the "super-rich families" of the nation.
Relishing mangoes this summer will cost a lot more as prices of the fruit have shot up by 50-65 per cent as supplies have been hit following unseasonal rain.
The bill was tabled after Speaker Sumitra Mahajan rejected the contention of parties.
Rahul Gandhi will be back "soon", Congress President Sonia Gandhi said in Amethi on Saturday while answering questions about her son's mysterious "leave" which has extended to over a month so far.
In the first part of an exclusive interview with Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com on the eve of the first year of the Narendra Modi-led NDA government, BJP President Amit Shah talks about the government's achievements and the controversy over the land ordinance.
The toll in the deadly blast and fire, apparently caused by leakage from a Gas Authority of India Limited gas pipeline, on Saturday rose to 17, even as Andhra Pradesh police registered a case of negligence against the state-run firm.
Just one year after taking office, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is facing a challenge that could come to haunt him.
'The government has failed to understand the seriousness of the situation, and that's why they are underestimating the problem.' 'They think some tinkering here and there will fix the economy automatically.'
Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa said the "unprecedented" northeast monsoon killed 470 people and nearly a lakh livestock besides damaging crops in over 3.83 lakh hectares.
The ravines, which are sharp, steep mud hillocks, stretch over three states - Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh, once home to several dreaded dacoits have long been the subject of several projects and government schemes to make them agriculturally viable.
'These people are living on the edge of starvation and governments need to show much greater compassion towards them.'
The agrarian crisis must be met with similarly speedy responses.
Ahead of the Parliament session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday reached out to parties appealing them not to come in the way of prosperity of farmers, saying the deadlock over the land acquisition bill is seriously impacting rural development.
The government will announce minimum support prices for kharif.
The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear on Monday the plea of farmers' organisations challenging legality of the fresh promulgation of the land acquisition ordinance by the Narendra Modi-led government.
If the fishermen were not allowed to fish in their traditional areas (Katchatheevu), they would be left with no other alternative except to commit suicide like distressed farmers, they said.
The incident, which came months after the lynching of dairy farmer Pehlu Khan by suspected cow vigilantes in Alwar, has triggered an outrage.
'The so-called economic reforms are for the rich.' 'The government should not facilitate and entertain this kind of lust for land by the capitalists.'
'Obviously, MSP hike raises chances of a reduction in exports. Even without an MSP hike, India's exports of a number of agri-commodities, like sugar, were unviable in the overseas markets.'
In heart-wrenching scenes reminiscent of the aftermath of the 2019 Pulwama terror attack in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed, coffins of soldiers arrived in several states for the last rites with full military honours.
India's development plans, requiring 11 million hectares of land over the next 15 years, is likely to stoke tensions
Those from the longest ruling family are criticising (the PM) on suit. I ask you, haven't your father and grand father worn suits," he said.
Is the Budget sufficiently prudent? It probably is but at the cost of substantial under-provisioning for the many grand sounding schemes announced in it, says Nitin Desai.
The Centre said bird flu has been confirmed only in Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh so far, but all states should be prepared for any eventuality. States have been told to ensure sufficient stock of PPE kits and accessories required for culling operations.
The Telugu Desam Party has confirmed that its chief Chandrababu Naidu will be sworn in as the chief minister of Seemandhra on June 8. The swearing-in will take place six days after Telangana Rashtra Samithi supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao is sworn in as the chief minister of Telangana.
True, Azam Khan is being targeted rather disproportionately and also because of his Muslim identity. That must be protested and resisted. But to say that he is a big messiah, and his profit-making educational enterprise is an issue concerning all Muslims of India, is absolutely unjustified, assert Mohammad Sajjad and Md Mohammad Zeeshan Ahmad.
'It is a national shame that the only country that enacted a food security act is now better known as the land of farmer suicides. Indian farming can change only if national irrigation policy is implemented in totality,' Dr M S Swaminathan tells Shobha Warrier/Rediff.com
Forget about interim Budgets, one cannot easily recall even a full Budget of any government in recent times having rolled out benefits of this order to such a large number of people, says A K Bhattacharya.
The Tamil Nadu government welcomed the decision, hailing it as a 'grand victory for the 'Amma (Jayalalithaa) government' and the state's farmers'.
Hitting out at Prime Minister for calling note-ban a 'shuddhi yagna', senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan said the move is nothing short of an "uncontrolled forest fire" that has claimed several lives and hit the economy.
This month has been the "wettest" March in northern and central parts of the country in the past 100 years, the Indian Meteorological Department said on Sunday, and predicted more rains in the coming two weeks.
Indian farmers depend on June-September monsoon rains, as half of the country's farmland lacks irrigation facilities.
Launching a blistering attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party over the "India Shining" campaign, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Friday said the balloon of Gujarat's development model will burst.
During his interaction with the chief ministers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured that more economic activities would resume; he also said that zone identification may be left to the states.
The manifesto, on the lines of the party's promise in Delhi in 2015, also says the AAP government will set up Aam Aadmi canteens at sub-division and district levels where one time meal will be available for Rs 5, and reduce the power tariff to half for usages up to 400 unit.
More than 53,500 people were now staying in various relief camps across the state.
Hundreds of Congress workers on Monday clashed with the police during a protest against the BJP government's Land Acquisition Bill, saying it was anti-farmer.
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