2019

by Mustafa Khan
Looking back to Narendra Modi in 2002 there is reason to believe that there will be mass destruction and slaughter in the future. He has won the war and so post-war destruction in terms of revenge and settling the issues and scores will be a matter of focus for some and concern for others. Moreover Modi is the real-time revanchist-in-chief of our century as far as India is concerned. Do not forget that 2002 was the 10th anniversary of the demolition of the Babri mosque. He (…)

by Saumitra Mohan
The Rain God has been playing pricey for sometime in this country. All the skyward prayers and purported rain-invoking rituals seem to have been in vain with the rainfall still remaining elusive and erratic in many parts of India. The delayed onset of rains is said to have resulted in a 27 per cent drop in sowing of kharif crops. With the water crisis looming large on the horizon, the subject experts and scribes are seemingly having a field-day diagnosing the problem and (…)

For 17 years, justice has eluded Mukhtaran Mai, the woman who has come to represent the feudal underbelly of Pakistan. The country’s best known gang-rape survivor has been pushed between police investigations and court trials on one hand and, while gaining ‘celebrity’ status in the West, earned opprobrium from successive governments and the conservative classes at home on the other.
Her quest for justice remains unending and elusive and, on June 12, eluded her yet again, when the Pakistan (…)

From N.C.’s Writings
Gopalaswami Parthasarthi or GP, as the legendary diplomat, academic and media specialist was widely known to one and all, passed away in New Delhi on August 1, 1995. His birth centenary was observed on July 7, 2012. This piece by N.C., who was quite close to him, appeared in Mainstream (August 12, 1995).
The passing away of Gopalaswami Parthasarathi on August 1 marked the disappearance of a familiar landmark in the public life of our country. A diplomat, media (…)

A thoughtful feature of the post-Cold War ‘adjustment’ in India’s foreign policies following the disbandment of the former Soviet Union was that Delhi should stick to the proverbial principle ‘see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil’ when it comes to America.
The maxim of the three wise monkeys in the ancient Indian folklore stems from the elite’s ‘unipolar predicament’—a notion that to be on the right side of history in the 21st century means India might as well jump on the US bandwagon. (…)

Once Upon A Time
Once upon a time there used to be A Left in politics. Now even the Centre cannot hold Off the Right’s umbilical trick
The Left remained a reasoning fool, The Centre a shapeless sponge; The Right is a focused Ninja Trained to exact revenge.
Yet many a good woman and true And sundry stubborn mavericks Do not give up on their souls, Braving the punches and kicks.
What cause then do we have To distrust the human seed That yet succeeds through calamities To burgeon (…)

by Sunil Ray
The massive electoral defeat of the Leftist parties in India in the recent Lok Sabha election seems to have pushed many to despair and left nothing to hope for its revival. While commoners are increasingly feeling its gradual disappearance in India, scholars, especially those who are from the non-Marxist persuasion, find some reason to reaffirm their claim that it has lost its relevance in Indian politics. However, Marxist scholars continue to retain their position that it can (…)

The Economic Survey presented by the government to Parliament on July 4, 2019, a day before the Budget presentation, targets eight per cent growth and aspires India to grow at this rate annually, so that it becomes a $ 5 trillion economy in five years time—2024-25. That is the ultimate goal of economic policy, and the government thinks that by achieving it, India will become a wonderland and everything will be hunky-dory. (Currently India’s GDP is $ 2.7 trillion—2018.) Economists have been (…)

by Sher Singh Sangwan
Vision of Budget
The Finance Minister (FM), at the outset of her Budget speech, has spelled out that the Budget 2019-20 attempts to align its goals with the Vision for the decade, that is, “take the economy to US$ 5 trillion level” from US $ 2.7 trillion in 2018-19. The strategic focus areas outlined are expediting investment for physical and social infrastructure; Digital India, MSMEs, Start-ups, defense and other manufacturing, water management, self-sufficiency (…)

by Nandita Chaturvedi and Archishman Raju
It seems a little out of place for us, who have had very limited interaction with Primla Loomba, to be writing a tribute to her and we must humbly acknowledge that there are those who knew her far better, much more intimately, and will write in a way that does justice to her life. If we have taken this step, therefore, it is because a brief hour-long meeting with her in January (2019) made such a deep impression on us and came at such a formative (…)