The concept of the ‘Rule of Law’ is the basic structure of our constitution. It becomes imperative to observe the rule of law in order to run the country according to the constitutional provisions. However, in reality, often politicians with criminal records get elected and even become part of the government, destroying the whole idea of the rule of law. Law-breakers after becoming
Education is one of the primary requisites that contribute to the holistic development process of self and society. Article 21A of the Constitution considers “free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right.” In India, the majority of the population lives in villages, and the most viable option for accessing education fo
The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) defines Corporate Social Responsibility as “a management concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and interactions with their stakeholders”. The eventual goal of any effective CSR policy is to balance the economic, environmental, and social imperatives that a comp
Inquilab: A Decade of Protest Foreword by Swara Bhasker HarperCollins India, lviii+206 pages, Rs 399 On April 5, 2011, some newspapers carried a single-column report about a Gandhian rural-development activist joining a protest movement to press for a Jan Lokpal bill. Many newspapers did not find it newsworthy. That was the time when the UP
The India-US two-plus-two ministerial dialogue, concluded late last month, has once again reaffirmed the two countries’ commitment to strengthen their bilateral engagement and work for peace and tranquility in the Indo-Pacific region. As it was held against the backdrop of a bitter standoff between India and China in eastern Ladakh, the two countries during their 3rd two-plus-two dialogue
By now most of us already know about the Baba ka Dhaba, a three-decade-old eatery in South Delhi whose story recently went viral on social media. An elderly couple who runs the place and their struggle during the Covid-19-induced lockdown period were all across the internet and news after their video was uploaded on social media by a vlogger. I loved to see the distressed elderly owners smiling
When my water bag broke, at age 24, I excitedly woke my parents and said let’s go to the nursing home, in Mumbai, to have my first baby because I could not wait to get back home to my hubby in Bahrain. Of course, I was totally unprepared. And it turned out to be the turning point of my understanding of life. A rude shock instead of an ecstatic process that giving birth to new life ought t
Fifteen years back, the Right To Information (RTI) Act became operational on October 12, 2005. It was the auspicious day of Vijayadashmi. It appeared to herald a new evolution in Indian democracy. Citizens who had been advocating this law saw an opportunity of converting India’s defective elective democracy into a true participatory democracy that will give citizens true freedom.
The Courage to Exist A Philosophy of Life and Death in the Age of Coronavirus By Ramin Jahanbegloo Orient BlackSwan, 96 pages, Rs 195 When China witnessed a new epidemic at the beginning of the year, we did not panic. There had been at least four such epidemics in this century itself, creating a scare, but leaving majority o
The Indian electricity sector is going through an interesting phase right now. Many reforms are being introduced to increase competitiveness and transparency in the sector. The power market in India is a surplus market now and the spot prices are going down day by day. With all these indicators signaling a journey towards a mature power market for India, the introduction of derivatives to the p
The Indic Quotient: Reclaiming Heritage through Cultural Enterprise By Kaninika Mishra Bloomsbury India, 230 pages, Rs. 499 Over the past decade, India has seen a significant rise in passion for enterprise as well as pride in heritage. The two have converged to form successful ventures and imaginative social initiativ
International observers will keenly watch the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee meeting next month. The central committee is the highest organ of the CCP with a mandate to execute the decision of the National Congress which is convened once every five years. Besides economy, rising tension with the US in the South China Sea, tension with India on the Line of Actual
Richard Rogers, an acclaimed Western architect and author of such books as ‘A Place for all People’ and ‘Architecture and the Fair Society’, wrote, “Architecture is about Public Space, held by Buildings.” So Rogers (without drawing an analogy from Mahatma Gandhi – my reinterpretation of his talisman – of putting the poorest man/woman at t
According to the American Heart Association, ‘cardiovascular disease’ refers to a number of conditions including heart disease, heart attack, stroke, arrhythmia (abnormal heartbeat) and heart failure. Heart failure refers to the heart’s inability to pump blood at the same level of efficiency as a healthy heart while arrhythmia refers to a heartbeat that is slower or faster tha
SEEDS, a not-for-profit organization, enables community resilience in the areas of disaster readiness, response and rehabilitation. Manu Gupta, co-founder of the organization, is a doctorate in community-based disaster management and the current Chair of the Asian Disaster Reduction and Response Network, an active network of NGOs from over 20 countries in Asia. He is part of the Leadership
According to the “lesser of two evils” principle, whenever we have to choose among two evils, we should go for the lesser one. Flawed election systems provide voters such a limited choice that they are forced to vote for the “lesser evil.” This is the situation we are facing these days while choosing our representatives. Noam Chomsky, the most famous advocate of “t
Recognising the importance of election manifestos, the supreme court directed the election commission (EC) of India to frame guidelines directly governing the contents of the election manifestos in the case of S. Subramaniam Balaji v. State of Tamil Nadu & Ors. reported in (2013) 9 SCC 659. Although the EC issued certain guidelines on election manifestos, framed in consultation with the pol
The Fourth Industrial Revolution has steadily amalgamated information communication technology (ICT) in every aspect of modern human life, having a profound impact on economic and social systems by altering business structures and consumer habits. About two decades back, ICT infrastructure was an augmented resource for business, but today with technical advances it has become the first layer of
Did India’s nuclear tests in Pokhran in 1974 affect the local population? That is the starting point for a new novel, Uday Singh`s `Pokhran` (published by Srishti). It expertly blends real-life with fiction to deliver a thrilling journey of revenge and courage. The debutant author is an economist and an engineer “with keen interest in philosophy and a firm belief
It is perhaps neither new nor is it unacknowledged by people in general that India has, after the deadly scuffle with Chinese soldiers on the Line of Actual Control, decided to do away with caution or hesitation while dealing with China on issues related to foreign policy, business and investment and strategy. On the policy front, hints came from none less than minis
