New Delhi puts its best foot forward as India assume presidency of G20 on 1 Dec

Pradeep Rana November 29, 2022

NEW DELHIWith just one day to go for India to assume presidency of G20, a league of world’s largest economies, on 1 December, the Ministry of External Affairs leaving no stone unturned to put its best foot forward. There was a special briefing for envoys of G20 and invitee countries and international organisations on India’s […]

Liberal Opinion: South Asia Politics-2: India as a new power holds the limelight

Prabhjot Singh November 29, 2022

All eyes will be focussed on Delhi. It has an important task on hand that requires it to avoid the temptation to turn its G20 presidency into a gimmicky year-long “festival of India” in the run-up to the 2024 general elections. The outcome of the present intricate rivalries will have implications beyond South Asia and […]

Liberal Opinion: South Asia is at the centre of global geopolitics

Prabhjot Singh November 29, 2022

If South Asia in general and India in particular are hawking world attention, it is primarily because of an intense power competition involving the US, Russia, China and India.  India’s ascend to the Presidency of the G20, the US-China rivalry, and an intense competition between India and China are some of the factors that make […]

Can NGOs collect voter data in garb of raising awareness? EC says big NO

Pradeep Rana November 28, 2022

NEW DELHI About 10 days back, the news of an NGO conducting door to door survey and collecting voter’s data sent alarm bells ringing in Nirvachan Sadan, the head quarters of Election Commission of India. The data was being collected in the garb of raising voter’s awareness. Why does EC take such activity with great […]

‘Grab the low hanging fruit’ of India-Australia FTA: Piyush tells steel makers

Pradeep Rana November 25, 2022

NEW DELHI Buoyed by the ratification of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) by the Australian Parliament, Indian Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal exhorted the steel industry captains saying they should grab the low hanging fruit of exporting steel to the Pacific nation under the new arrangement. Addressing the 3rd edition of ISA Steel Conclave […]

Liberal Opinion: Should Governor be loyal only to the Constitution?

Prabhjot Singh November 13, 2022

Who should all sit together to choose Governors? The number of States where the Governor-Government relationship is taking a turn for the worse has been on the rise. After Punjab, it has spread to Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Telangana. Issues may be varied but the outcome is the common, the growing rift between the government […]

Liberal Opinion: SGPC elections: Will Sukhbir Badal do what his father did in 2003?

Prabhjot Singh November 13, 2022

SGPC elections: Is 2022 going to be a repeat of 2002? The Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal must have heaved a sigh of relief after his hand-picked Harjinder Singh Dhami won his second term in office as the President of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. His once loyalist and the first woman chief […]

Liberal Opinion: Trends: Assassination attempts are nothing new to politics in South Asia

Prabhjot Singh November 6, 2022

When an attempt on the life of former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was made on Thursday, it was a revival of an unfortunate and  gory aspect of Pakistan’s recent political history. After Pakistan came into existence in 1947, similar attempts, including a few fatal, have dotted the history of this trouble-torn nation. Cricketer-turned politician […]

Liberal Opinion: Who is responsible for Morbi suspension bridge collapse?

Prabhjot Singh November 6, 2022

Last week witnessed two of the  worst catastrophes  in recent times that took a heavy toll on human life. Not only the nations concerned – Korea and India – but the whole world plunged into gloom over these tragedies that struck Seoul in Korea and Morbi in Gujarat.   Intriguingly, the Morbi tragedy happened even […]

India commits $500K to UN efforts in counterterrorism, calls for technology denial

Pradeep Rana October 31, 2022

NEW DELHI Urging the nations to contribute to United Nations Counter-Terrorism Centre, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar said India on its part will be making a contribution of half a million dollars in UN fund for its efforts in counter-terrorism. Representatives from different nations converged in capital to sign a “Delhi Declaration on Countering […]

IIT Madras, NASA studying germ-life in space, their impact on space travellers

Pradeep Rana October 30, 2022

Can germs left out in the spacecraft infect astronauts during the space travel? Do they infect, spread and die the same way as the do on Earth? Researchers at IIT Madras and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory are studying microbial interactions taking place in the International Space Station (ISS) to make space travel safe for humans. […]

Liberal Opinion: Politics: Disturbing Discords

Prabhjot Singh October 17, 2022

When discords outnumber accords, conflicts start. Conflicts are invariably detrimental to the health of a liberal democracy. They are not only a diversion from the core issues of a State or its people but also at times lead to disastrous consequences. Punjab has been gradually moving towards an avoidable conflict. Starting with the refusal of […]

Liberal Opinion: Media: Censorship is “stupid” but it stays, thanks Information highways

Prabhjot Singh October 17, 2022

Censorship for many may be a crude way of curbing freedom of expression. It has a history longer than the print media. Movements supporting freedom of expression  have been creating ripples here and there, by pricking the conscience of political bosses but debate continues unabated. Censorship has survived various religious, social and political struggles all […]

Liberal Opinion: Sports: Dilip Tirkey could not have started any better

Prabhjot Singh October 12, 2022

Olympian Dilip Tirkey  could not have asked for more.  His start as President of Hockey India  was like a dream coming true. In his first month in office, he saw  the country make a near clean sweep of the prestigious International Hockey Federation (FIH) star awards. By the time he completes six months, India will […]

Liberal Opinion: Electoral Politics: Growing voters disengagement is worrying

Prabhjot Singh October 12, 2022

Is the current format of electoral politics due for a review? Disturbed by growing disengagement of voters in the existing format, political scientists have been engaged in animated debates on restoring trust between voters and elect (politicians). Their immediate provocation has been continuous downslide in the percentage of votes cast in elections at different levels.