Somnath temple

Somnath Temple: Instrumentalizing History As A Political Tool

History is not a tool to divide society and perpetuate the injustices of the past. It is there to show us what wrongs have happened in the past which should not happen again. We need to march towards a just society where all live the life of dignity and respect, a society where all of us enjoy equal citizenship rights.

Sri Lankan Government In A Fix Over Proposed Education Reforms: PM Under Pressure

Public opposition towards the reforms escalated after a web link to a gay dating site was found in one of the lessons in the grade six English language module.  This website was subsequently blocked by the regulator for internet users in Sri Lanka.  The lesson was intended to teach ten-year-old kids how to make online friends.

India's Celebrated Space Programme Under Cloud: ISRO’s second successive rocket failure Raises Uncomfortable Questions

Producing satellites for any purpose is an expensive endeavor. Failure to launch them has a profound impact not just on the client entities’ bottom lines but even the quality of science and services they may be seeking to pursue. Fifteen out of the sixteen satellites on the failed mission were from foreign entities, which constitute a lucrative market for ISRO. If they begin to nurse misgivings about ISRO’s reliability it can seriously dent not only the agency’s revenue but, more important, its reputation

Internationalisation Of Higher Education In India Is Key To India's Social Progress And National Strength

Internationalisation also plays a crucial role in addressing the long-standing issue of brain drain. For decades, large numbers of Indian students have pursued higher education abroad, particularly in North America, Europe, and Australia. While this has strengthened India’s global presence, it has also resulted in substantial outflow of talent and financial resources. Many students who leave choose not to return, contributing their skills to other economies.

 

More on Perspective

Importing wheat for India’s food security is an imperative

Thus, more than one third of the world’s hungry and undernourished people are in India, which is alarming and embarrassing, if not shameful. India’s rank in the global hunger index also (GHI) has dropped to 101 out of 116 countries

Rupee convertibility: Can it make the Indian currency stronger?

Days are ahead when the rupee will tend to become fully convertible. Full convertibility means fully capital account convertibility in the balance of payment. It opens the market for foreign investors, businessmen and trade partners

Is Bangladesh heading for stagflation?

Bangladesh is going through a tough economic situation; the government’s two largest sources of foreign currency revenues are the export of readymade garment products and remittances from overseas. Remittances are already suffering

On their 75th independence anniversary, peace pilgrims from India bring message of love to Pakistan

This is part of a long tradition of celebrating the two countries’ independence days together, started by activists like the late Dr Mubashir Hasan, Nirmala Deshpande, Asma Jahangir, Kuldip Nayar, and others.  Peace groups on either side have been doing this for a couple of decades now, even as administrations in both countries try to prevent them

Indian cultural diplomacy - and creation of a South Asian identity

The basis of all Indian philosophy is the recognition of divinity in the human species and giving respect to all faiths and shades of opinion

Indian Navy’s all-woman aircrew creates history

Over the years, women officers in the Indian armed forces have begun notching various types of achievements

Welfare spending is not freebie culture

It must be understood that welfare spending is essential to partly redress the widening inequality in Indian society

Ameliorate plight of cross-border prisoners: Joint appeal by South Asian organizations

Release prisoners on completion of jail term, decriminalise inadvertent border crossings, especially for fisherfolk and minors

Misuse of Indian Army uniforms has dangerous consequences: Army’s distinctiveness must remain paramount

Uncontrolled proliferation of the existing combat uniform has led to many cases of breach of security of military establishments and personnel and, while it has been a cause of concern, not enough action has been initiated

Save the children: Millions of children victims of acute malnutrition, hunger and diseases in Afghanistan; girls shut out of education

The country is already one of the worst places in the world to be a child, And, in the past year, the situation has become grimmer because of crippling poverty, violence, and drought, according to UNICEF.

Militants, separatists better than opposition: Imran Khan's remark shows Pakistan's deteriorating democracy

His remarks came days after some media reports indicated that the Pakistan Army could try to facilitate a dialogue or deal between Khan and the ruling coalition to create a consensus on early elections, which remains Khan's primary demand, writes Shraddha Nand Bhatnagar for South Asia Monitor

Pakistan’s ruling coalition dealt yet another blow, its legitimacy in crisis

The decision to oust Imran Khan ultimately allowed him to hijack the anti-establishment tag in his favour. Khan’s repeated reference to the government as the “imported government” and to the military as “neutrals” further reinforced his perception as a popular civilian leader

India's 15th President Droupadi Murmu, hailing from the tribal community, says she embodies dreams of the country's poor

In that sense, her choice by the dispensation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, otherwise seen as an autocratic leader who has been accused of undermining many of India's democratic institutions, is seen as nothing sort of revolutionary, both by the standard of the country's conservative political and social norms

Why is India resilient to oil volatility despite overdependence on imports?

In India over 75 per cent of electricity is generated from coal-based thermal plants. Oil accounts for less than 2 percent of electric power, writes S. Majumder for South Asia Monitor

South Asia does not value its manhours: Change working hours

The simplest solution will be to change working hours by advancing it to 0700 hours and ending the workday at 1530 hours, so that the entire working hours are during daylight hours, writes Amb Sarvajit Chakravarti (retd) for South Asia Monitor