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| VIEW FROM PAKISTAN | | Time to recalibrate our security policy | | | | The almost-simultaneous recent terrorist attacks in Lahore and Kabul clearly remind us of the cross-border mobility, capacity and advantages terrorists exploit due to the ongoing hostility between Afghanistan and Pakistan. What multiplies the terrorists' resourcefulness and effectiveness is the intended and unintended support they get from the two countries which blame each other for otherwise mutually destructive facilitation.
Chief of Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has rightly observed that: "Concurrent blasts in Kabul and Lahore are testimony to the fact of our stance that both Pakistan and Afghanistan are victims of terrorism". Indeed, "both countries will continue to suffer if these actors are able to use Afghanistan's territory with impunity", he said. Similarly, the Afghan gover... |  | |
| | | Malala inspires girl students of Bhopal | | District officer's initiative creates buzz | | | Pakistan's Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, who was shot at by Taliban for daring to go to school, is now a role model for thousands of girls in Bhopal. A collage of photographs depicting Malala's struggle and success stories created by the Bhopal District Education Office (DEO) has been pinned on notice boards of all government girls' schools in the state capital.
This novel initiative has evoked a huge interest among girl students who not only want to be like Malala, but also want to represent the country at the international forum for promoting girl's school education.
Talking to media Nikeeta Dhoken (16), a class X student of Government Naveen Higher Secondary School, said: "Malala is a role model for us. I don't care if she belongs to Pakistan. I also don't care if people s... | | |
| | | CAG report for 2015-16 mentions massive malfunctioning in railways | | Prabhu has a tough task to improve quality of services | | | Ever since the NDA government returned to power after a decade of wilderness in 2014, the new dispensation under the inscrutable but all the more intrepid leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is blazing a new trial on the economic landscape with gusto. Whether it was the dismantling of the erstwhile Planning Commission, a relic of the socialist past , the demonetization of high denominational currencies or the merger of the rail budget with the general budget, the Schumpeterian paradigm of creative destruction has been the hallmark of this government, regardless of the wider ramifications this wrought on the body politic in its wake.
For the Indian Railways, the appointment of a former Shiv Sena leader Suresh Prabhu who was expelled from his party but who was greeted with open arms... | | |
| | DEAD-END | | World Hepatitis Day | | | | "Uncle."
"Yes dear."
"28 July: World Hepatitis Day. Why?"
"Hepatitis is an inflammation of liver which may worsen to liver cancer. It is caused mainly by five viruses identified as A, B, C, D, E; some toxic substances (alcohol and certain drugs), autoimmune diseases, and some infections also cause the disease. Worldwide, in 2015 alone, 325 million people had chronic hepatitis infections and of them 1.34 million died. Every year this disease kills some 1.4 million people. Yes, dear, hence was born the World Hepatitis Day."
"Uncle, the Day born exactly how?"
"Yes, the 63rd World Health Assembly, in May 2010, adopted a resolution which resolves that '28 July shall be designated as World Hepatitis Day in order to provide an opportunity for education and greater understanding of vira... | | |
| | SIGNS OF THE TIMES | | Lynching of psyches! | | | | The RSS-affiliated Shiksha Sanskriti Utthan Nyas, headed by Dina Nath Batra, has sent a list of recommendations to the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) demanding a host of changes in its textbooks. News reports state that Batra has asked the NCERT to remove English, Urdu, and Arabic words, a poem by the revolutionary poet Pash and a couplet by Mirza Ghalib, the thoughts of Rabindranath Tagore, extracts from painter MF Husain's autobiography… Batra also wants references to the Mughal emperors as "benevolent", the BJP as a "Hindu" party, the National Conference as "secular", an apology tendered by former prime minister Manmohan Singh over the 1984 riots, and a sentence that "nearly 2,000 Muslims were killed in Gujarat in 2002" to be removed.
Few yea... | | |
| | | Lalu Prasad Yadav, the political phoenix | | Bihar leader faces his biggest challenge | | | Former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav is boxed in from all sides, but does it mean he is politically finished? Jury is out although he is known for his survival instincts, as despite several court cases and convictions, he has surprisingly sprung back in the state as well as national level politics not once but many times. For the man who has served as Railways Minister and Chief Minister of Bihar, the next few months could be a test for his staying power, as his opponents say that's likely to change this time as not only the RJD supremo but also his entire family is facing corruption charges.
Why is Lalu surviving? He has the proverbial nine lives of a cat. In 1994, Nitish Kumar and George Fernandes formed an alliance with BJP. But in 1995, Lalu came back with a bang in Bihar. ... | | |
| | | Can Mayawati reinvent herself to become a force in U.P. | | | | Has the ever unpredictable Mayawati been rash in resigning from the Upper House of Parliament during the new President's election? Or does she have a well-planned scheme to fight the firewalls that have been erected against her and the Bahujan Samaj Party, of which she is the overlord? Does Mayawati face a dilemma, a big one at that, about getting back to the mainstream of public life, which is Parliament?
Does she feel that although she was Chief Minister of U.P. four times, did she pay sufficient attention to good governance and improve the quality of life of the poorest of the poor, who happened to be among the most backward castes, who had been neglected by rulers of all kinds, imperial or of local vintage, for centuries? Will she try to correct her image as a well-dressed queen with... | | |
| | | Staving off the coming Global collapse | | | | Humans have a virtually unlimited capacity for self-delusion, even when self-preservation is at stake.
The scariest example is the simplistic, growth-oriented, market-based economic thinking that is all but running the world today. Prevailing neoliberal economic models make no useful reference to the dynamics of the ecosystems or social systems with which the economy interacts in the real world.
What truly intelligent species would attempt to fly spaceship Earth, with all its mind-boggling complexity, using the conceptual equivalent of a 1955 Volkswagen Beetle driver's manual?
Consider economists' (and therefore society's) near-universal obsession with continuous economic growth on a finite planet. A recent ringing example is Kaushik Basu's glowing prediction that "in 50 years, the wor... | | |
| | | Modi may prepone next Lok Sabha elections to 2018 | | Mamata is ready-what about other opposition parties? | | | West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has blown the bugle for her anti-BJP campaign at the annual Martyr's Day Rally in Kolkata on July 21. She has given a call for removing BJP from power in 2019 Lok Sabha elections by the joint efforts of all the anti-saffron forces. She has conveyed her willingness to be of help to forge the widest possible unity of the opposition parties to challenge the BJP led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the 2019 poll. The Trinamool Congress supremo has announced a BJP-Quit India type of campaign from August 9 to August 30 in all the districts of West Bengal to expose the"misdeeds" of both the state BJP and the centre headed by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and she wants that this campaign should take place in other states under the leadership of t... | | |
| | | BJP consolidates its hold by capturing posts of President & Vice President | | | | Election of Ram Nath Kovind, a Dalit, as the 14th president is yet another step of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his scheme of management of the country. Slowly but surely, Modi is moving to dismantle opposition and is having persons of his choice in constitutional positions.
For the first time in the history of independent India. Lok Sabha speaker, Vice President who also presides over the Rajya Sabha and President are not only from the BJP but also belong to the Rashtriya Swyamsevak Sangh (RSS) that facilitates and ensures the ideological intrusion into the political and economic system.
The BJP is politically comfortable and is placed well in the background of opposition being in a state of total disarray. Modi's popularity continues to be high. There is no dissent either in the BJ... | | |
| | | Modi has now complete sway over BJP and government | | Managing judiciary will be the next target of saffron camp | | | As expected Ram Nath Kovind is the new President of India, succeeding versatile Pranab Mukherjee but he is not as multi-talented as the outgoing President. The change of guard at Rashtrapati Bhavan will have its consequences. The equation between the President and the Prime Minister has always been subject to considerable modification and negotiation after every of change of player; and, though Rashtrapati Bhavan is not the rival centre of power, its occupant can be a source of irritation and frustration for any Prime Minister.
It is widely accepted in political circles that Ram Nath Kovind is Prime Minister Narendra Modi's personal choice; moreover, it is further suggested that in opting for him, the Prime Minister has bypassed the RSS leadership, who had different ideas. Kovind is a h... | | |
| | | Trump targets Latin American Left | | Efforts on to bring about regime change in Venezuela | | | United States President Donald Trump may be most looked down in his own country - he might be having the lowest popular rating among the US Presidents in the first six months of their respective tenures, but he has started his actions in bringing down the popularly elected governments in Latin America. Right now his target is regime change in Venezuela ruled by the Leftist President Nicolas Maduro. This is being followed by instigating the rightwing forces in Brazil to see that the popular former President Luiz Lulla da Silva is not allowed to stand for the Presidential elections in October 2018.
Venezuela, with 20 million population is in deep political turmoil due to economic crisis in the wake of the steep fall in the prices of crude oil and the minerals. Venezuela under the former Pr... | | |
| | | Why Darjeeling deadlock continues | | Disruption of supplies causes huge losses | | | For once, one can agree with Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) leader Benoy Tamang: as the indefinite bandh in North Bengal hills seems destined to enter a second month, he asked publicly, "Is Darjeeling out of India?"
For all the 'interest' both West Bengal and the central government have shown to address the contentious issue of Gorkha autonomy, the answer to Tamang's question should have been obvious: as of now, for all practical purposes, Darjeeling is off bounds to the rest of India and Indians!
Acting Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court, judge Nishita Mhatre echoed Tamang's sentiment as she exclaimed, "Just what is going on here ? "during a sitting. She wondered whether the people of Darjeeling must suffer because two different parties --- the Trinamool Congress(TMC) in Bengal and the... | | |
| | | Kashmir: An Inconvenient Truth | | | | Kashmir is internationally recognized as a disputed territory whose final status is yet to be determined by the people. Both India and Pakistan have nuclear weapons and have fought three wars during the past half-century. This is a matter that urgently needs to be put on a road to find a just and viable solution.
The heart of the matter is that Kashmir is an occupied country. Its sovereignty and right to self-determination is being ignored. India insists that this state, which is nestled in the Himalayas between Pakistan and India, is an integral part of India and refuses to negotiate in any manner with the people of Kashmir or with Pakistan. The claim is rejected not only by the people of Kashmir but also by the international community.
Any effort to resolve the conflict requires conf... | | |
| | VIEW FROM THE GALLERY | | Time to build national unity to deal with twin threat from Pakistan & China | | | | The danger is that India which at present is facing unrest in Kashmir which is actively supported by Pakistan may find yet another front being opened against it by China.
How serious is the threat of stand off between Indian and Chinese troops on trijunction with Bhutan becoming a full scale confrontation on the border between India and China. As far as India is concerned efforts are on to resolve the issue through diplomatic channels, but China is adopting aggressive attitude and threatening that if Indian troops did not withdraw it could lead to humiliation of India as was the case in 1962.
Chinese media has been actively issuing threats to India and its aggressive attitude is online with Chinese approach to other countries in the region and has gone to the extent of sugge... | | |
| | DEAD-END | | Downtown & Uptown! | | | | "Uncle."
"Yes dear."
"Downtown: how come the term and what does it mean?"
"Dear; term downtown they say was coined in New York City, was adopted by the United States and Canada during the late 19th century, was clearly established as one proper term in American English in early 1900s, yet was virtually unknown in Britain and Western Europe; even now the term is not generally used in British English. In American English now the term means any city's central business district; British English equivalent thereof still generally is city centre."
"And Uncle, term uptown - whence and what does it mean?"
"Dear, population exploding, business multiplying in city centres, more and more people sold their property there, moved and settled in outer quieter areas - and these came to be... | | |
| | | Mergers & IBC | | Turning around banking sector | | | As is generally agreed, the banks form the bedrock of the financial sector of a country. As such, the recent decision to merge smaller banks with the larger ones such as Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda and Canara Bank, to gear up efficiency and profitability is believed to be a step in the right direction. The idea behind this merger is a larger regional bank to take on a pan-Indian footprint. This is one of the important steps the Government has thought of in gearing up the banking sector.
Regional consolidations have also been considered so that a North-based bank takes over another in the same region. The NPA problem is not expected to come in the way of such mergers. The only consideration would be not to make the merged entity weaker but a little stronger to take on future ch... | | |
| | | Lynching to power | | | | Mashal Khan, a 23 year old journalism student was seized from his dorm room by a mob that stripped and beat him, then shot him dead on 13 April 2017 in Mardan in North West Pakistan. Khan was accused of offending Islam (Rasmussen and Baloch 2017). In the month of May 2017, a mob attacked a police station demanding that Prakash Kumar, a 34 year old Hindu, arrested under blasphemy laws of Pakistan, be handed over to the mob (AFP 2017). Just over a week later, a mob attacked a mentally ill man who claimed to be a prophet at his local mosque in north-western Chitral (Pakistan). He was rescued by police. The spate of incidents followed government of Pakistan's drive against blasphemy. Unproven allegations of "insult to Islam" led to dozens of mob attacks or murders since 1990 in Pakistan.
Ind... | | |
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