Mainstream Weekly

Most recent articles

• Now China Is Taking On Japan Too; Is The Army’s Influence Growing?

  20 March 2013, by T J S George

  IMPRESSIONS
  Will the confrontation developing in the waters off China engulf us all? There is an explosive situation between China and Japan, an adversarial situation between China and Vietnam, an unfriendly situation between China and the Philippines and a prickly situation between China and Indonesia. The unhappy situation between China and India of course remains live.
  From the Chinese point of view, the Philippines and Indonesia are ignorable because they pose no military challenge. (…)

• The South China Sea — Dynamics of A Multinational Conflict

  20 March 2013, by Latika Nath

  The South China Sea is a topic of discussion at many international fora. In recent times, it is an area of intense disputes and rival claims which have contributed in making it a flashpoint of South-East Asia.
  The Sea covers over 1,400,000 sq.m and is dotted with hundreds (about 250) minute islands cays, atolls, sand bars etc. It also includes the Spratley and Paracel Islands together with the Macclesfield Bank and Scarborough Shoal. It is abundant in oil and gas together with fisheries. (…)

• Tribute: Hugo Chavez and New Socialism

  20 March 2013

  by Vivek Kumar Srivastava
  The philosophy of New Socialism of Hugo Chavez was primarily fashioned by his own childhood days where he had experienced the poverty-stricken dark side of life, and his mother Rosa who taught him how to integrate with the poor and to relate to the historical roots of Venezuela.
  His formative years were highly complex but he learnt to cope with the complexities of life which helped him in later years to deal firmly with the onslaught of the neoliberal challenges (…)

• Disquieting Developments

  10 March 2013, by SC

  EDITORIAL
  The two-day meeting of the BJP National Council in New Delhi had been called to endorse and ratify the appointment of Rajnath Singh as the party’s President. However, the meeting turned into something quite different: Gujarat CM Narendra Modi became the cynosure of all eyes with party leaders from President Rajnath Singh downwards singing paeans of praise for the organisation’s ‘Vikas Purush’ (Development Man) for having unveiled a development agenda in his State that was quite (…)

• Syrian Crisis: Way Out of the Blind Alley

  10 March 2013, by Benjamin Todd

  Western diplomatic circles are becoming increasingly pessimistic about what they term as the “Syrian revolution”. They are now contemplating changes in their policy of handling the Syrian crisis. Syria has turned out to be a headache for the US and its European allies of late with the project ‘Topple Bashir al-Assad’ having failed to succeed despite all efforts to ensure its success. The Syrian opposition (that is, those who are desperately seeking to destabilise the Syrian Government) has (…)

• Hugo Chavez, A Consistent Life

  10 March 2013

  TRIBUTE
  While mourning the untimely demise of Hugo Chavez we offer our sincere tribute to that indomitable personality. We are reproducing here the following profile of the Venezuelan leader issued and distributed by the Venezuelan Embassy in New Delhi, and publishing a poem composed in his memory.
  A tireless fighter. A unique social vision. An idea, universal and perennial: Socialism of the 21st century.
  Hugo Chávez Frias was born in Sabaneta de Barinas, on July 28, 1954. He passed (…)

• Viva Chavez

  10 March 2013, by Badri Raina

  You looked the bully in the eye,
  And called his bluff,
  Till millions rose around you
  To say enough is enough.
  You spoke to them of the things
  That were all their own;
  Till they said, lead us, brother Chavez,
  And we will not relent till we are done.
  You sat in the middle of the hoi polloi
  And made your best decisions there;
  You recounted the truth of oppressions,
  Till every labouring one was clear
  How the eagle had to be stopped
  From marauding at will,
  And how a (…)

• Returning the Kohinoor to Where It Belonged

  10 March 2013, by Kuldip Nayar

  British Prime Minister David Cameron has exhibited once again England’s imperial side when he came to discuss the Kohninoor. He said at Amritsar during his visit that his country “controls” the diamond, which is partly studded in the Queen’s crown. This only explains what the UK has done with the diamond after taking it away forcibly from India. This does not establish control, much less legal title. This only confirms British high-handedness.
  Cameron would have gone down better in India (…)

• When Budgets are Made by Politicians, they become Missed Opportunities

  10 March 2013, by T J S George

  IMPRESSIONS
  There is an accepted way to handle Budgets —and there is the Indian way. Our Budgets are the handiwork of politicians, not financial experts or railway specialists. They do not seek long-term plans aimed at public good. Some Ministers are smart and some are naive, but all focus on short-term advantages. Budgets are, year after year, our country’s biggest missed opportunities.
  Consider Railway Minister Bansal’s perfor-mance. This was his maiden Budget, the first time in his (…)

• Union Budget 2013-14: Farmers’ Expectation of Result Orientation

  10 March 2013, by Prabhakar Kulkarni

  The Finance Minister has announced a number of facilities for the farm sector. But as per past experience, farmers do not realise what is ensured in the Budget. This is because the system is not well guided both in clarity and specific commitment which is much needed in the context of the prevailing prohibitive factors.
  While the new private banks are expected to open branches in rural areas, they are now given facilities which are provided to the nationalised banks. But the introduction (…)