Editorial

Its Own Creation!

 WHAT several countries in Europe are facing by way of a pseudo-social uprising is a problem of the continent’s own creation -- of leaders’ political ambitions under the guise of liberalism stretched to ridiculous limits over decades. For..

Changed Tone

THE much-anticipated trade deal between India and the United States is very much on the horizon with both sides signalling rapprochement and finding a “landing point” for the stalled negotiations. This thaw amid tariff tensions is the biggest import of the meeting between US Secretary of State Mr. Marco Rubio and External Affairs Minister Mr. S Jaishankar in Mumbai apart from the toning down of anti-India rhetoric of the Trump administration in the last few days. Mr. Rubio’s meeting with EAM Mr. Jaishankar ..

Restraint, Peace

 DESPITE the energy truce between Russia and Ukraine, declared on his own by United States President Mr. Donald Trump, oil infrastructure in both countries continue to face increased attacks. Escalating hostilities, especially drone attacks on oil re..

Shami Snubbed

A CROP of young pacers will form India’s bowling unit in the two Tests against New Zealand next month. The national selectors have gone for a mix of youth and experience for the challenging campaign and at the same time sprung a surprise by including veteran Bhuvneshwar Kumar for the Twenty20 series. The return of Bhuvneshwar has stirred a debate over the snub to another veteran Mohd Shami in the Test team despite impressive performances in domestic cricket. Though the bowler looks unperturbed with ..

Shami Snubbed

A CROP of young pacers will form India’s bowling unit in the two Tests against New Zealand next month. The national selectors have gone for a mix of youth and experience for the challenging campaign and at the same time sprung a surprise by including veteran Bhuvneshwar Kumar for the Twenty20 series. The return of Bhuvneshwar has stirred a debate over the snub to another veteran Mohd Shami in the Test team despite impressive performances in domestic cricket. Though the bowler looks unperturbed with ..

Donald Ducks

JUST hours ahead of US Secretary of State Mr. Marco Rubio’s visit to India, United States President Mr. Donald Trump has waived the package of tariffs up to 100 per cent on countries purchasing oil and gas from Russia. The move is set to benefit India as it is one of the top two destinations for Russian crude. India had already raised its concerns on the sanctions act while stressing its right to practice strategic autonomy to fulfill its energy needs. The Trump waiver has come as a major relief for ..

Up, Not Enough

IN THE midst of global volatility and growing geopolitical tensions, India has clocked a good rise in its exports. During the April-September period this fiscal, India’s exports went up 18.51 per cent to USD 259.89 billion and the trade deficit narrowed to USD 30.21 billion. The Government data has noted a 23 per cent increase in exports in September underlining a positive trend and keeping the growth projections intact. Significant among these figures are the shipments to the United States despite ..

MOMENTUM PHASE

T HE India-Canada relations are in a phase of renewed momentum as the two countries close in on a free trade agreement by the year-end. The bitterness in the ties caused by the pro-Khalistani turn taken by Canada under former Prime Minister Mr. Justin Trudeau is now totally gone as his successor Mr. Mike Carney is in an overdrive to elevate the bilateral relations into a strategic partnership. Keeping in view the changing geopolitical equations and growing uncertainty over energy and food security, ..

KEEP UPI FREE

 A TEMPORARY relief has come this festive season for UPI (Unified Payments Interface) users as the Government has deferred the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) fee of 0.4 per cent on transactions over Rs 2,000 till the festivals are over. The National Pa..

The Street Show

THE ongoing protests in the National Capital against Chief Election Commissioner Mr. Gyanesh Kumar is turning into a political spectacle with high decibel levels and low credibility. The street show has sharply divided the country as more and more people are questioning the need of mob assembly when the issue of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is already in the domain of the Supreme Court. Moreover, the demand for Mr. Gyanesh Kumar’s removal, too, cannot be fulfilled by his resignation ..

Dreams Carrier

  PITCHES are hogging the spotlight in the India-West Indies white-ball series with belters dishing out mountains of runs. As the carnage of the ball continues under lights in the ongoing Twenty20 series, the good old Ranji Trophy has quietly st..

Adieu, Commando

 HE was always brutally honest... with his craft, with his calling, with his social responsibility, and with his bold views. Nana Patekar would never mince words while pouring out his mind, no matter the stature or position of the person at the other..

CAUTIONARY HIKE

 THE Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has followed the global script of tackling rising inflation by going for a hike of 25 basis points in the repo rate. The first hike in interest rate since February 2023 is a signal of the end of the era of low inflati..

WAIT AND WATCH

T HE much-awaited trade deal between India and the United States is not happening soon. Recent statements from both sides have made it clear that the negotiators have arrived at a point from where only a drastic policy change can pave the way for signing of a final deal. The deal framework is in place, signed in February by the two countries, but now with more sticking points emerging due to various reasons, finalisation of the agreement seems highly unlikely till normalcy is restored in bilateral ..

Good, Not Great

IN THE Land of Rising Sun, the Indian contingent took its own time to get up and going. But when it did, at the fag end of the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, it blazed a spectacular trail of sporting excellence which produced future stars on whom India can bank upon for next glory. India ended up with 85 medals, their second-best campaign in terms of total medals and gave a glimpse into a talent pool which if nurtured well can bring even Olympic medals beginning in Los Angeles in 2028. The 85-medal ..

Flawed Strategy

 IF THE One-Day International Series between India and West Indies was part of the Indian team’s preparations for the 2027 ICC 50-over World Cup, then the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had chosen an absolutely flawed strategy. Th..

Safety In Air

 INDIAN captain of the Flydubai flight, Captain Smit Machchhar, has been hailed as a hero not only by the Indians but also by many other countries. He deserves every bit of accolades for the exemplary bravery shown to save the Dubai-Tel Aviv flight f..

I.N.D.I.A Reset?

 THE I.N.D.I Alliance has yet again found its voice against the Central Government after the Indian Express report detailing objections by two Election Commissioners to a number of decisions overseen by Chief Election Commissioner Mr. Gyanesh Kumar r..

Danger Ahead

 AGRICULTURE Secretary Mr. Atish Chandra has sounded warning of a possible foodgrain crisis as the El Nino weather pattern is set to cast its intensity in the Rabi season. The warning holds tremendous importance not only for the Central Government bu..

Loaded Comments

AHEAD of Indian participation in the three-day Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of National Coordinators meeting in Islamabad and immediately after the rebuke to Pakistan at United Nations General Assembly session in New York, Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Mr. Rajnath Singh have made statements with loaded meaning for the neighbour. Their statements about war and Operation Sindoor have prepared grounds for pressure on Pakistan as it assumes 2026-27 chairmanship ..

Set An Example

 BIHAR Police and the legal system have been handed a great opportunity to set a telling example by handing strictest punishment to the ‘moral police’ in Jamui district. The group which harassed and molested two teenagers must face conseq..

Marathi film ‘Gondhal’ is India’s pick for Oscars

MARATHI film “Gondhal” has been chosen as India’s official entry to the Oscars 2027, the Film Federation of India announced on Friday. Written and directed by Santosh Davakhar, the film is set in rural Maharashtra and plays out over a night of a traditional ritual centred around a newly-wed couple. The film was chosen as India’s submission for Best International Feature category for the 99th Academy Awards from a list of 33 films, said P Sheshadri, Chairperson of the selection committee. “This year ..

Chandra?

THE Tatas have a really serious matter to tackle. Quite expectedly, a high-calibre contest has arisen about the decision of who should lead the Tata Sons as its Chairman. Though the situation may have all the trappings of a high-voltage board-room drama, a strong belief also persists that the Tatas would be able to find an amicable way out of the tricky challenge. That belief, of course, stands on the shoulders of the robust institutional culture of the Tatas -- built carefully over the Group’s existence ..

Spirit Of India

 THE first-ever Ganga aarti on the banks of River Thames in London marks another glorious chapter for Indian culture which is finding growing resonance globally. The Ganga aarti at Thames was a recreation of the ethos of remembering the flow of life,..

Formidable Front

 WHILE the Western world saw the BRICS summit in New Delhi with its highly-tinted glass, the consensus formed by the bloc’s members on various tricky issues cannot be ignored for the weight it has given to the Global South in current geopolitic..

SHAMI’S CASE

 V ETERAN pacer Mohammed Shami is still actively pushing for a chance in India’s Test team despite being overlooked for over three years. The 36-yearold’s performance in the Duleep Trophy should serve a reminder to the BCCI selectors that..

Poser For BCCI

ThE long-debated issue of Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) autonomy is set to find some clarity after the latest poser by the Supreme Court on why the Board and all the State Cricket Associations should not be governed by the National Sports Governance Act 2025. The BCCI will have to clear its stance on the new Act which is now in force, making its September 18 Annual General Meeting all the more interesting. The Indian Cricket Board has held a long-standing position in the courts that ..

Peace Pointers

ANOTHER interesting layer has been added to the upcoming BRICS summit in India with open acknowledgement of New Delhi’s peace efforts to end the Ukraine conflict by the Kremlin. The Russian statement has come hours ahead of the proposed bilateral talks between Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi and President of Russia Mr. Vladimir Putin on the margins of the BRICS meeting. That Moscow finds New Delhi’s position on ending the Ukraine conflict aligning closely with its own strategy tells that Russia is ..

Border ‘Harvest’

 DAYS after India and China Special Representatives (SR) agreed on an eight-point consensus to solve the festering boundary question, a corps commander-level talk was held in Arunachal Pradesh with an aim to maintain peace and tranquility along the f..

a red line

AFTER voting in favour of the United General Assembly resolution aimed at correcting the world map, India has reiterated that it would not accept any alteration to anything that does not depict its sovereign territory including Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. India’s position on backing the resolution aligns with the long-standing thought of backing equitable landmass representation and correcting historical geographic biases affecting developing nations. Though India has done well to back the much-needed ..

icon, inspiration

  POWER of manifestation and goal-setting were the major factors Smriti Mandhana had mentioned as powerful forces in her rise in women’s cricket. The elegant left-handed opening batswoman has made a fine combination of these two forces alo..

leap in the sky

AFTER a series of heartbreaks in 2025 and early 2026, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has taken a mighty leap by successfully launching EOS-05 satellite which is India’s first-ever imaging satellite placed in the geo-orbit. The successful launch has handed India a strategic advantage in monitoring large areas with a dedicated satellite and at the same time injected a fresh energy in ISRO to overcome anomalies in its earlier failed launches. The ‘Eye in the sky’ is not a “spy satellite” ..

The ‘raksha’ blueprint

‘RAKSHA’, India’s 10-year strategic blueprint, will certainly add tremendous value to its global view. Though the document is stated woven around the idea of what the Government has chosen to call ‘Defence Diplomacy’ as a core pillar of foreign policy, its comprehensiveness cannot be missed. Knowing fully well that India has to play an enhanced role in the global arena, thanks to its expanding footprint in most domains of internationalism, strategic planners and visualisers have included strategic ..

let’s blame ourselves

 TIME it is for all of us to blame ourselves for the dangerous effects of global warming. For, it is human greed that has led to this point of no-return on the ecological front -- in the past one hundred or so years. So bad is the situation that the..

The bishkek message

THE message coming out from Bishkek-hosted Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit rings louder in multiple contexts not only for the Western world but also the member-nations of the grouping. It was about setting limits to excesses in all forms by any entity failing which every country is free to defend is sovereignty and autonomy with its own methods. While the SCO summit signalled to the United States to impose checks on its military and financial recklessness, there were also clear hints ..

DR BHAGWAT’S MOMENT

T HE much-awaited address at Madison Square Garden by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Dr Mohan Bhagwat was a masterful articulation of the Indian civilisational perspective which thrives on unity in its great diversity. While Dr Bhagwat opened pathways into the United States think-tank with his pitch for universal brotherhood, he also delivered a solid rebuttal to those who had opposed his presence in America. In one stroke of effective oratory,..

PM’s sports thrust

 PRIME Minister Mr. Narendra Modi has done well to analyse why India’s medals tally in Olympic Games gets limited. The number of medals is less because Indian sportspersons do not take part in nearly half of the disciplines at Olympiads, he sai..

For a common voice

 AHEAD of the BRICS summit in India on September 12 and 13, the flurry of diplomatic outreach undertaken by Indian officials around the world holds a special significance, especially with the United States still entangled in the mess of its own creat..

Us’ economic strike

THE massive fall in Iran’s currency after the announcement of new sanctions by the United States looks like a natural reaction to the economic strike by Washington. The Iranian Rial hit a record low of 2.02 million to the US dollar as currency markets panicked at President Mr. Donald Trump’s announcement of launching Operation Economic Outcast against Iran. More volatility is in store in the coming days even as Mr. Trump takes the economic strikes route to batter Iran’s already weaker economy. However, ..

Shipbuilding hub

DEFENCE Minister Mr. Rajnath Singh’s assertion of making India a global shipbuilding hub underlines the tremendous potential the sector holds in the future. Once a traditional shipbuilder for a considerable period, India did experience a long lull in the field but now with renewed interest shown by the current dispensation, there is every possibility of emergence of an Indian shipbuilding hub and supply chain when traditional manufacturers are bringing down their production. Mr. Singh’s optimism of ..

DOUBLES NITRO

THE sporadic growth doubles badminton has seen in India might change into a full-fledged bloom after the historic World Championship bronze by the talented pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand. Though the duo went down in the semi-finals, they ensured that India’s 15-year wait for a Worlds medal in women’s doubles would finally end. India had last won a World Championship medal in this category back in 2011, when Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa claimed bronze in London. Treesa and Gayatri have ..

Mr. trump’s imperative !

 FEELING rather badly cornered, United States President Mr. Donald Trump has declared Strait of Hormuz as a ‘new US Territory’ -- so that he will have the authority to take tough action to guard the interests of ‘American’ ter..

Et tu, trump !

THE Opposition camp in India will now have problem with United States President Mr. Donald Trump, as well. For, as he advocated a new Save America Act, Mr. Trump has cited as successful and foolproof the Indian system of voting on the basis of voter-identity cards. The US President has called the Indian election system worthy of emulation. There is no doubt that these remarks by Mr. Donald Trump will disturb the Indian Opposition to no end. For, the Opposition have cited Mr. Trump innumerable times ..

One more push

THE Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has given one more push to its organisational system to make it more future-ready -- in view of the Legislative elections in a few States, and also with the distant 2029 Lok Sabha election in 2029 in view. It has tried to make a happy mix of young and the experienced leaders to occupy various positions. Some leaders have staged a comeback -- such as former Union Minister Mrs. Smriti Irani. Some leaders such as Mr. Piyush Goyal have been given organisational responsibility ..

Pakistani people’s grief

EVEN when the nation is still deliberating on the message of Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi from the ramparts of the historic Red Fort, his thirteenth address in a row, well-meaning people in Pakistan are appreciating his leadership of India in crucial times. They also wonder if Pakistan could have any such leader -- with a similar vision and efficiency. Many of them, as social media posts reveal, indulge in comparing the overall performances of both the countries, and state that India has done ..

FINDING SELF

CRICKET in whites is back and that too with a bagful of surprises. The preeminent form of the game continues to enchant its die-hard connoisseurs with its twists and turns spread over sessions and days. A historic win by Bangladesh over Australia has set the tone for the season, adding spice to the World Test Championship title battle. The victory is special for the entire cricketing world as it has exposed the vulnerabilities of the Australians who are used to dominating opposition in their backyard. ..

The tata culture

MAJORITY of the Tata Group stocks bounced back after falling following the news of the decision of Mr. N. Chandrasekaran not to continue as Tata Sons Chairman after the lapse of his tenure on February 20, 2027. This positive reversal of fortunes of most Tata stocks did not suggest any magical development, but only pointed to the Tata Culture of excellence, dignity, ethics and values. Investor community knows these high-calibre virtues of the Tata Group companies and reposed faith in the Tata stocks ..

Recognise balochistan

EVERY passing day brings complete Independence of Balochistan closer. For decades, the Baloch people are engaged in a fierce struggle for Independence from Pakistan. They rightly insist that Pakistan had illegally and immorally usurped Balochistan when the people and the monarchy of the land were actually in favour of an independent nation. If that were not possible, then they had shown a pro-India tilt -- expecting to integrate with India in 1947. For reasons difficult to reason out now, India declined ..

At long last !

EVEN as differences mounted in the top layers of the Tata Group, Mr. Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Sons, has sought to signal an end of all those by declaring that at the end of his current term on February 20, 2027, he would step down. In his letter of resignation to Mr. Noel Tata, Chairman of Tata Trusts, Mr. Chandrasekaran has expected that his successor be found by that date. Though Mr. Chandrasekaran would continue his association with the Indian corporate world in this or that form, ..

Double standards

WHATEVER is happening in Jharkhand during the protests by students over alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations is a scary reminder of the dirty politics practiced by the country’s Opposition parties. Their double standards have become crystal clear over the protests even as Jharkhand Police resorted to use of force on the peaceful agitators during their march to the State Assembly. There was no trigger for police action during the march yet the State Government unleashed water cannons, ..