Mainstream Weekly

Most recent articles

• Letter from Prof C.H. Hanumantha Rao

  13 April 2019

  The following is a letter from Prof C.H. Hanumantha Rao as a response to a request from the Mainstream editor to throw some light on the economic content of Indira Gandhi’s Garibi Hatao slogan in 1971 as he was in the decision-making apparatus of the Union Government in the 1980s.
  Dear Shri Chakravartty,
  It is so nice hearing from you. As desired, I am giving below my impressions on the current debate on schemes for reducing poverty and inequality. This piece is too small, as I am not in (…)

• Beware of the Ides of March

  13 April 2019

  COMMUNICATION
  The editorial comments on the Christchurch carnage [Mainstream, March 23, 2019] were indeed very apt and appreciable. The promptness and fortitude displayed by the New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, underscores her determination as well as approach to the issues. Gun control has received due priority for the administration to address in the backdrop of the carnage executed by a remorseless beast, who is a native of New Zealand. We feel sure he will pay the highest (…)

• US’ Indian Ocean base to Remain

  13 April 2019

  by Harish Chandela
  The major American naval and air base in the Indian Ocean at Diego Garcia in the Chagos Archipelago is unlikely to shut down, in spite of the International Court of Justice cancelling its lease and the decision that the island be returned to Mauritius, of which it was a part of.
  The base had been used by the United States during its operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Gulf war.
  Refugees of the archipelago had gone to the International Court against Britain’s (…)

• Festival of Democracy

  13 April 2019

  by Samit Kar
  India, the world’s largest democracy, would go to polls shortly. Never in the history of Indian democracy, the party or the coalition that had been able to usurp power at the Centre could gain the support of more than 50 per cent of the net population of our country. In several cases, the support base was hardly 30 per cent of the national population. Though the concept of democracy was found in the Indus Valley Civilisation, the Greeks and the Romans were instrumental for the (…)

• Overt and Covert Racism and Communalism

  13 April 2019

  by Irfan Engineer
  On March 15, 2019, 50 Muslims offering their Friday prayers died and 48 were injured when they were shot in the Masjid al Noor mosque in Christchurch and at the Linwood Avenue mosque in New Zealand. Brenton Tarrant, a 28- year-old son of an Australian working class family and the gunman behind at least one of the mosque shootings in New Zealand, posted his 74-page manifesto making his reasons for the shooting clear. The Prime Minister of New Zealand called it a terrorist (…)

• Narendra Modi, the }‘chowkidar’ of the Elite

  13 April 2019

  by Mahi Pal Singh
  When he contested the parliamentary elections in 2014 for the first time, Narendra Modi claimed to be a ‘chaiwala’, referring to his humble beginning as a child, so that ordinary people would identify with him and vote for him. He and his party did get 31 per cent votes which were sufficient for them to come to power under the multi-cornered and the present system of election in which the candidate getting the highest number of votes amongst the contestants is declared a (…)

• Honouring Ambedkar

  13 April 2019, by Nikhil Chakravartty

  From N.C.’s Writings
  April 14, 2019 marks the 128th birth anniversary of Dr Babasaheb Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar. On this occasion we are reproducing the following piece by N.C. to offer our sincere homage to the abiding memory of that towering personality.
  The award of the Bharat Ratna posthumously on B.R. Ambedkar raises mixed feelings. No doubt Ambedkar was one of the stalwarts of modern India; the high water-mark of his career was that he contributed most to the drafting of the Indian (…)

• How Ambedkar makes us Richer

  13 April 2019, by T J S George

  IMPRESSIONS
  “The Hindus wanted Vedas, and they sent for Vyasa, who was not a caste Hindu. The Hindus wanted an epic, and they sent for Valmiki, an untouchable. The Hindus wanted a Constitution, and they have sent for me.” That was B.R. Ambedkar at his biting best. He went on to underline an existential misfortune of India: “The greatest tragedy of the Hindi belt is that the people of that region discarded Valmiki and installed Tulsidas.”
  That was his way of saying that the impact of (…)

• Dr B.R. Ambedkar, Dalits and Decentralised Rural Governance in India: Ideas, Application and Reality

  13 April 2019

  by Mahi Pal
  Introduction
  Dr B.R. Ambedkar was one the greatest sons of India who was not only a parliamentarian, scholar of repute and constitutionalist expert but also a crusader for the Dalits in India.1 He struggled throughout his life for establishing such a social order which is based on liberty, equality and universal brotherhood. This requires not only liberty and deliverance of the oppressed, depressed and suppressed, but also establishment of such institutions which are not only (…)

• Ambedkar and Constitutionalism

  13 April 2019

  by Vivek Kumar Srivastava
  Constitutionalism is structured on the ideals of limited government, rule of law, regulations and democratic values. The idea of constitu-tionalism was a major theme during the freedom movement which matured in the thoughts of Nehru, Ambedkar and so many greats of the age but these two giants were in a position to implement the pillars of constitutionalism as both worked in different capacities in the Constituent Assembly and in governance.
  Ambedkar was unique (…)