Opinions

Defining Azaadi in Kashmir
02-09-10

BY KEDAR NATH PANDEY
VERY few Muslim Kashmiri boys are willing to come out of Kashmir in search of jobs. Without making the story too long and loaded with the Rajatarangini, sufism and so on, all Kashmiris believe in something called Kashmiriyat. But no matter how hard they try, they can’t define it.

Abandoned Goans
02-09-10

THE report that residents of a few villages in the Cotigao sanctuary have not got electricity, road and other amenities since Liberation is extremely damning for the state government. The neglect becomes even more scandalous because the residents are mostly people below poverty line who are the state government’s priority.

Morally Correct in Iraq
02-09-10

THE US has formally declared the end of its combat mission in Iraq. In history, the US combat engagement in Iraq would always remain disputed for its moral correctness: some would say the world was left with no other option to remove Saddam Hussein and dismantle his autocratic system in order to create ground for a parliamentary democracy to thrive in the country;

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
02-09-10

Peace Not War
THE article, ‘Iraq free to chart its own course: Obama’ (NT, August 29) was welcome news indeed. This news will be even more welcomed by the near and dear ones of the troops sanctioned in Iraq. But who will clear the mess and rebuild Iraq.

Fall of CPM and Rise of Mamata
02-09-10

BY PRAFUL BIDWAI

THAT the Communist Party of India (Marxist) dreaded the most in West Bengal, its bastion for 33 years, has happened. Trinamool Congress Party leader, Ms Mamata Banerjee held a well-attended rally at Lalgarh in the Jangalmahal region bordering Jharkhand, enlisted the support of the People’s Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA), and announced the end of Left "hegemony".

Truly Green
02-09-10

WHILE agriculture is dying in the state, the Goa State Horticulture Corporation’s procurement scheme for locally grown vegetables provides a ray of hope. Goa is the only state where there is a government procurement scheme for vegetables.

Bhopal Retrial
02-09-10

THE Supreme Court’s decision to re-examine its 1996 judgment that mellowed the charges against the guilty in the Bhopal gas disaster is going to be balm to the deep wounds thousands of victims suffered.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
02-09-10

Tax Concessions for Senior Citizens

THE revised Direct Tax Code (DTC) recently introduced in Parliament has unfortunately not brought much cheer to the senior citizens. While the proposed tax exemption limit for individuals has been raised from ` 1.60 lakh to ` 2 lakh, that for senior citizens is a paltry jump from ` 2.40 lakh to

Troubled West Looks to India
01-09-10

BY KULDIP NAYAR

RECENTLY, I had the opportunity to travel through the UK and the US for almost one month. I want to share my assessment of the two countries. It is needless to say that Great Britain and America cannot be compared in economic or political prowess because the latter is literally dominating the world.

Switzerland’s Double Standards

01-09-10

THE Swiss Banking Association report 2006 shows dishonest Indians have stashed a huge $1456 billion black money in the secret bank accounts in Switzerland, one of the world’s best known tax havens.