NEET-UG and conduct I write this letter as a former Director of Entrance Exams and Admission, Anna University, Chennai. The NEET-UG 2025 has had fewer “irregularities” this time when compared to its earlier editions, especially last year. Question paper leaks, impersonation and outsourcing of the key from outside an exam hall are some of the … Read more
A protest by Accredited social Health Activist workers, in Bengaluru, in January 2025, for fixed wages | Photo Credit: THE HINDU/K. MURALI KUMAR The central government employs millions of regular and contract workers who are recognised as government employees and are in the pay spectrum of the government. The government also employs several types of … Read more
In an escalation of bilateral trade-related tensions, India recently announced restrictions on readymade garments and other specified commodities from Bangladesh. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade’s announcement targeting Bangladesh’s vital apparel sector sent an unmistakable signal that deteriorating political relations have now spilled over into economic ties. By specifically denying Bangladeshi goods access to India’s … Read more
On April 24, addressing a public gathering in Bihar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “India will identify, track and punish every terrorist and their backers. We will pursue them to the ends of the earth….” Known to speak in Hindi to domestic audiences, it was noteworthy that the Prime Minister switched to English to say … Read more
Last week, the Supreme Court of India finally struck down as “illegal” two notifications by the Union Environment Ministry that allowed industrial units to set up, expand operations or change their manufacturing practices without following the due process of taking government permission beforehand. Taking ‘prior’ approval is a sacrosanct principle at the heart of the … Read more
With conservative State governments in the United States enacting policies that opponents claim jeopardize academic freedom, institutional autonomy, and intellectual diversity, American colleges have recently turned into arenas for ideological conflict. Although freedom of thought and inquiry have long been defended by the U.S. as essential components of its higher education system, that basic foundation … Read more
Sunny Joseph, the newly appointed president of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee, being welcomed in Kozhikode. | Photo Credit: K. Ragesh After deliberating for more than six months, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) on May 8 effected a leadership change in the party’s Kerala unit by appointing Sunny Joseph as president of the Kerala … Read more
India has, for a while, been facing a nutrition paradox where under nutrition and obesity coexist. Image by jcomp on Freepik There is an increased focus in public discourse on growing obesity among adolescents. The seventh edition of Poshan Pakhwada, held last month, focused on childhood and adolescent obesity alongside the first 1,000 days of … Read more
In an unconscionable act, a professor of political science at Ashoka University, Ali Khan Mahmudabad, was arrested on Sunday by the Haryana Police after two separate first information reports (FIR) were registered against him in Sonipat. These FIRs were over his social media posts in connection with Operation Sindoor. The first message analysed the strategic … Read more
Diplomacy and action I write with reference to the Editorial and the Editorial page article (both May 19).” Nearly a month after the tragic Pahalgam attack, the perpetrators remain at large. I have full faith in our security agencies and armed forces. But, at the same time, as we dispatch all-party delegations abroad to counter … Read more