Mainstream Weekly

Fundamentalism and Secularism

P N Haksar — 2017-11-26T18:05:15Z

On November 27 this year falls the nineteenth death anniversary of distinguished administrator P.N. Haksar, one of the country's foremost thinkers. [He passed away on November 27, 1998, precisely five months after N.C., who was close to him in his thinking, breathed his last.] On this occasion we remember him by reproducing an article he wrote in Man and Development (Vol. XIII, No. 4, December 1991), the journal he edited.
In the charmed world of Alice in Wonderland, words can be made to (…)

- 2017

The Relevance of Jawaharlal Nehru

P N Haksar — 2016-11-28T08:34:43Z

November 27 marks the eighteenth death anniversary of P.N. Haksar, one of the foremost thinkers of twentieth-century India who left an indelible imprint on the administration of this country in the post-independence period. He was the Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi (December 1971-January 1973) and played a vital role during the India-Pakistan war that led to the liberation of Bangladesh in December 1971. His 103rd birth anniversary was observed on September 4 this year. (…)

- 2016

Two Contributions by P.N. Haksar: Relevance of Gandhi-Nehru Nexus ; Fundamentalism and Secularism

P N Haksar — 2014-12-01T18:45:34Z

ON P.N. HAKSAR'S SIXTEENTH DEATH ANNIVERSARY
November 27 this year marks P.N. Haksar's sixteenth death anniversary. On this occasion we offer our sincere homage to one of the country's foremost thinkers by reproducing the following contributions by the former Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister. Haksar's role as an eminent administrator and distinguished diplomat would remain indelible in the history of post-independence India.
Two Contributions by P.N. Haksar
Relevance of (…)

- 2014

The Making of an Indian

P N Haksar — 2013-09-08T15:16:44Z

In the citation which the Vice-Chancellor has just read out, some flattering things have been said about me. I was rather pleased hearing it all. At the same time doubts began assailing me. I asked myself: What led the University of Kashmir to honour me? Was it because by accident of birth I am classified as a Kashmiri Pandit? But there are many such Pandits. And there are quite a few who are, if anything, more distinguished than I am. So being a Kashmiri Pandit could not be the real (…)

- 2013

Fundamentalism and Secularism

P N Haksar — 2012-12-01T01:13:25Z

On November 27 this year falls the fourteenth death anniversary of distinguished administrator P.N. Haksar, one of the country's foremost thinkers. On this occasion we remember him by reproducing an article he wrote in Man and Development (Vol. XIII, No. 4, December 1991), the journal he edited.
In the charmed world of Alice in Wonderland, words can be made to mean anything. Regrettably, outside the Wonderland, words have to be used with utmost care. The context in which a word arises must (…)

- 2012

Foreign Policy Perspectives and the American Scene

P N Haksar — 2011-11-27T11:04:54Z

November 27 this year marks the thirteenth death anniversary of P.N. Haksar, the eminent administrator and distinguished diplomat as well as one of the country's foremost thinkers. He was the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission and a Member, UN International Civil Service Commission. On this occasion we offer our sincere homage to the abiding memory of that towering personality, a recognised authority on foreign policy, by reproducing the (…)

- 2011

Politicians and Bureaucracy | Reinforcing Democracy

P N Haksar — 2010-12-01T00:04:00Z

Two Articles of P.N. Haksar November 27 this year marks the twelfth death anniversary of P.N. Haksar, the eminent administrator and distinguished diplomat as well as one of the country's foremost thinkers. On this occasion we offer our sincere homage to his abiding memory by reproducing the following articles. The first one was written in November 1977 and published in Mainstream (February 21, 1987) and the second one appeared in Mainstream Annual 1989. Both are relevant in the present (…)

- 2010

Foreign Policy Perspectives and the American Scene

P N Haksar — 2009-11-28T01:29:07Z

November 27 this year marks the eleventh death anniversary of P.N. Haksar, the eminent administrator and distinguished diplomat as well as one of the country's foremost thinkers. The former Principal Secretary to PM Indira Gandhi was also a recognised authority on foreign policy. On this occasion we offer our sincere homage to his abiding memory by reproducing the following article from the December 1980 issue of Man and Development, the quarterly journal of the Centre for Research in Rural (…)

- November 2009

Relevance of Gandhi-Nehru Nexus

P N Haksar — 2008-12-03T06:51:54Z

November 27 this year marks P.N. Haksar's tenth death anniversary. On this occasion we offer our sincere homage to one of the country's foremost thinkers by reproducing the following piece by the former Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister. Haksar's role as an eminent administrator and distinguished diplomat would remain indelible in the history of post-independence India.
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The fundamental preoccupation of our distant and ancient thinkers was with three questions: First, who am (…)

- November 29, 2008

Some Reflections on Gulf War

P N Haksar — 2007-11-28T10:16:32Z

[(On the occasion of the ninth death anniversary of Parmeshwar Narain Haksar (September 4, 1913-November 27, 1998), the eminent administrator and diplomat, we reproduce the following piece that was published in Mainstream (May 11, 1991).)]
In one of his books, the perceptive British historian, Sir Louis Namier, observed that arguments, howsoever cogently presented by the weak and supported by facts, are apt to cause annoyance and are likely to be dismissed as mere quibbles. We are (…)

- November 24, 2007