Mainstream Weekly

Most recent articles

• Old Age

  24 February 2019, by Badri Raina

  It is that time of life
  When no matter where you tie
  The belt, the belly escapes
  Over or under.
  Let me say of old age that
  Should you not have your pills
  Ready to hand, it is a blunder;
  And should you be well nonetheless,
  It is a wonder.
  There are those who wilt and die
  For no discernible reason;
  And there are those who flourish
  Unexplained in many a mortal season.
  But those alone are happy past
  That proverbial three score and ten
  Who feel beyond their ailments. (…)

• Crimes against Women in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh

  24 February 2019

  by Ranbir Singh and Sonia Aharwala
  The present States of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh had been carved out on November 1, 1966 as a result of the linguistic reorganisation of the trilingual State of erstwhile Punjab on the recommendation of the Parlia-mentary Committee on the Punjabi Suba headed by Hukam Singh. The Punjabi-speaking areas were left in Punjab for accepting the Akali demand for Punjabi Suba, the Hindi-speaking areas were constituted into the State of Haryana and the (…)

• Crucial Concept of Earth’s Survival Crisis

  24 February 2019, by Bharat Dogra

  To understand the very critical times through which all inhabitants of planet earth are passing, the concept of a survival crisis is of crucial importance. Briefly, this concept refers to a range of serious problems which taken together can badly disrupt the special life-nurturing conditions of earth due to which such a wide diversity of life has flourished here. This disruption can take place within the 21st century, in fact as early as within the next few decades. Several very senior (…)

• What ails the Public Distribution System?

  24 February 2019

  by Santosh Kumar Biswal
  The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) witnessed its catastrophic failure in three Hindi heartland States—Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan—in the recent State Legislative Assembly polls, when these are compared to the 2013 elections. Its strongholds of MP and Rajasthan saw its declining mode in these regions. Moreover, the BJP was badly routed in the recent polls in Chhattisgarh. Could the failure of the Public Distribution System (PDS) be responsible for (…)

• Resilient Hinduism has Endured Upheavals

  24 February 2019

  by L. K. Sharma
  The following is the fourth or concluding article written by the author on the theme of Politics and Hinduism. These were published as “Divine players in Indian Politics” (Mainstream, January 26, 2019), “Sowing Division: Caste is Crucial in Indian Elections” (Mainstream, February 9, 2019), “Rising Roar of Faux Faith in Poll-bound India” (Mainstream, February 16, 2019). A brief version of the following article appeared in Mainstream Annual 2018 (December 22, 2018) under the (…)

• Statesmanship: Need of the Hour

  17 February 2019, by SC

  EDITORIAL
  What happened today in Kashmir has once again brought back the issue of India-Pakistan confrontation on Kashmir to the forefront. The sheer magnitude of the terror strike in Avantipora in the Pulwama district, about 20 kilometres south of Srinagar, on the Jammu-Srinagar highway should make the authorities alarmed over the extent of alienation of the local Kashmiris from the Government of India and the security forces: from all available accounts of what took place this afternoon (…)

• The Bangladeshisation of Indian Politics

  17 February 2019

  by Partha S. Ghosh
  Now that India’s secularism is degenerating into one of competitive Hindutva, it is being seen as the Pakistanisation of Indian politics.
  Even the liberal fringe of Pakistan, ever unhappy with all that has been happening in that country, looks at it that way. A video clip that went viral sometime ago lamented: “Alas, you too turned out to be like us” (in Urdu: Aap bhi hamare jaise nikle).
  But this comparison is only partly true. In reality, India resembles (…)

• The games that Sri Lankans play

  17 February 2019, by Apratim Mukarji

  If there is one issue on which almost every Sinhalese would agree, it is the incompatibility of federalism in Sri Lanka. Yet, their government has introduced a draft Constitution to replace the traditional executive presidency system with a Westminster type of government and a federal state.
  The question naturally arises about the prospects of such a move; will such a Bill pass muster in a House consisting overwhelmingly of Sinhalese members? Will these legislators dare to antagonise their (…)

• Appropriating an Icon: RSS Celebrates Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s Birthday

  17 February 2019

  by Ram Puniyani
  On this January 23, the BJP-RSS organised various programmes to honour Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. In one of these programmes, a clash took place leading to a curfew in Kendrapada, Odisha. In different meetings organised by the BJP-RSS an attempt was made to draw parallels between Bose and Savarkar, Bose and the RSS. A propaganda is on to show that it was on Savarkar’s suggestion that Bose undertook to tie-up with the Axis powers (Germany and Japan). Parallels are being (…)

• George Fernandes — A Lifelong Rebel and Coalition-builder

  17 February 2019

  TRIBUTE
  by Shambhu Shrivastava
  The best tribute to George Fernandes would be to acknowledge the fact that nobody, just nobody ever treated him as a Christian. He was always treated as a front-ranking leader of post-independence India. He was a true embodiment of the idea of India. This fact assumes great meaning in the times we live in when religious and caste identity of a person has become a badge of honour.
  George was a lifelong rebel. His family sent him to a Christian seminary for (…)