Within two weeks of the speech, the prime minister flagged off the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, and the day was marked by announcing its outcome on the very first day of its implementation.
Modi's tweets talk about the celebration of democracy and also puts emphasis on the education of girls, says Mayank Mishra
The Parsi community runs India's respected corporate houses like the Tata, Wadia and Godrej groups.
Lloyd and Sussane Rudolph -- two University of Chicago professors who started studying Indian politics in the 1950s, have been named the winners of the Padma Bhushan Award.
Corporate Social Responsibility can become a serious tool for improving the lives of millions in any structural and long term way, writes Rajni Bakshi.
The agreement on services, if ratified by all member countries, could prove to be a game changer for Indian professionals in education, healthcare & IT.
'The BJP has latched on to the idea of nationalism, but the nationalism they advocate is not nationalism as we have understood it since the time of the freedom movement.' 'This is not secular nationalism, it is Hindu nationalism.' 'It is a form of nationalism that is exclusionary and it tends to conflate national interest with the government.' 'So, if you disagree with the government, for example, on surgical strikes or demonetisation, you are anti-national or holder of black money.'
32 years ago, CPI-M activists hacked both the legs of Sadanandan Master, a former party member who has moved over to the RSS. Master learnt to walk using prosthetic legs and rebuilt his life. Today he is the BJP candidate highly-sensitive Koothuparamba constituency of Kannur. He told Shobha Warrier/Rediff.com his story.
The need for co-ordinated policy between Centre and states was likewise foreseen and assigned.
A delayed monsoon and abundant cotton in the international market could spell trouble in the state's suicide zone.
Subramanium, a feisty character, is not going to let anyone sully his reputation. He is ready to answer any question, any change which is more than what the Modi regime might be ready for. One man's integrity and toughness can crack a regime's carefully-built faade. Suddenly its backstage looks murky, says Shiv Visvanathan.
The perception about JNU being 'radical' is one that is as old as JNU itself. But the university is more than just that. At its heart, its campus is a mosaic of ideologies that allow its students to breathe politically.
In our series on Super30 achievers, we find out how Aquibur Rahman has fared since he cleared his IIT-Joint Entrance Exam.
'Your constant reiteration on the lack of religious freedom in India has sown doubts about the kind of information that you are being fed and based on which you seem to be making adverse references to India and its tradition of religious tolerance.'
In spite of irritants and hiccups in the relationship, a few deliverables are expected of the prime minister's visit to China, says Rup Narayan Das.
'The question remains: Was the Obama visit truly a success? Only the future will tell us if the "breakthrough" in the nuclear liability issue will concretise into electricity.' 'As importantly, it will be interesting to watch how India's relations with China will evolve in the months to come.'
The BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi will need to break several records to emerge victorious in the next Lok Sabha elections. Mayank Mishra reports.
'Even with the restrictions of depositing more than Rs 2.5 lakh in a bank, people will find new methods to convert this cash hoard into legal tender.'
Harassment, corruption and the burden of compound interest for years are also the reasons.
Ishita is helping the local community in Spiti lead better lives and build a sustainable environment.
China is spending billions of dollars to improve infrastructure in Tibet and other parts of its border with India. Claude Arpi explains why New Delhi can't afford to ignore Beijing's plans.
'AMU is a secular university with an Islamic ethos.' 'We do not discriminate on the basis of religion. Let me tell you Muslims do not need reservations. They need affirmative action in education.'
'It is certainly time for New Delhi to open up. Not only should it go ahead at full steam with the roads to the LAC, but the government must also allow tourists to visit these stunningly beautiful areas of Indian territory.'
'It used to sound very strange.' 'That the same child who used to sing Jana Gana Mana the loudest in class, who celebrated August 15 and 26th January with such fervour and who has always nurtured the desire to make India a better nation being called desh drohi.' 'It was very painful.'
Jyoti Punwani examines the relevance of the Sairat, the hit Marathi film everyone is talking about, in today's times.
'Earlier India as part of the Third World fought for the rights of the Palestinians. But oddly the defeat of the Congress and the decline of the Nehruvian imagination has altered such perceptions. The new middle class expresses an open sympathy for Israel, contending that Jews like many Hindus has been misunderstood,' says Shiv Visvanathan.
With fresh enrollments crossing 100,000 mark, the total number of Indian students studying in the US reported a sharp increase this year.
Winners of the Stree Shakti Puruskars share their stories on how they are empowering women. Upasna Pandey/Rediff.com reports
'For years American academia has used the concerns about Hindutva in India to almost completely trash the concept of Hinduism.' 'In the American debate, Wendy Doniger's point of views perpetuated Hinduphobia.' 'Americans were willing to change... Indian intellectuals let us down badly.'
Atheela Abdullah, who grew up in a small village in the Malabar region of Kerala shares her inspiring success story.
'Be responsible, don't use a condom tonight' goes an advertising campaign that is an insult to the intelligence of a community that is by no means ignorant or illiterate, argues Sherna Gandhy.
'I kept telling Anurag, "I don't care about anything, I don't want any money. Just get the film made".' 'One day I called Anurag and someone else picked up the phone. He said, "Hello, Sir." I responded, "Hello, but who are you and why are you picking up Anurag's phone?" He said, "I am Ranbir Kapoor Sir". And he told me he was doing the film and he was very excited.'
'Indian politics has had three-and-a-half master narratives -- secular nationalism, Hindu nationalism, justice for lower castes and regionalism. The AAP seeks to go beyond that. Therein lies its promise and its challenge,' says Ashutosh Varshney, Brown University professor and author of book Battles Half Won, India's Improbable Democracy.
'Modi's campaign has been strikingly devoid of anti-Muslim rhetoric. After the kutta pilla incident, it has been several months since he said something horrible about the Muslims of India. It is the result of democratic constraints. He has to make compromises... He's trying to reinvent himself. He will politically hurt himself if 2002 becomes the definition of Mr Modi again', says political scientist Ashutosh Varshney.
While even the Opposition doesn't believe that Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy is personally involved in the solar scam, the Congress leaders reputation has been tainted. And while he tells Indulekha Aravind that it is only a conspiracy, it may have a bearing on the coming general elections
'This is not a Sanjay Baru or Natwar Singh type of book. It's not a memoir. It's not a book to reveal conversations, real or imaginary. This is not a book to position myself at the centre of the world.' Jairam Ramesh on his stint as environment minister.
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