These days there is a lot of enthusiasm in progressive liberal circles about the powerful presence of dissent in Indian traditional thought.Accompanied by head-shaking about the pernicious effect of Anglophilia and dominance of the Engish language in academic circles. Inordinately nettled at the saffron camp’s repression of liberal thinking in the name of pristine Indian tradition and at its hostile[Read More…]
In the death of Mr N.D. Patil on January 17 we have lost a dedicated, honest leader of the Peasants and Workers Party. His wife Saroj is the sister of Mr Sharad Pawar and the two leaders represent two contrasting approaches to politics. Mr Pawar, the leader of the Congress and then the National Congress party, in fact comes from[Read More…]
Long before intersectionality became a prevailing concept which helped delineate the relationship between various marginalized and oppressed groups, late South Africa’s Archbishop Desmond Tutu said it all in a few words and in a most inimitable style. “My humanity is bound up in yours, for we can only be human together,” he said. Like other freedom and justice icons, Tutu[Read More…]
MLK day was observed on January 17 yesterday in the USA and many parts of world. Actually there was some confusion regarding the exact day as last year MLK day was observed on January 18 which is the date today. This confusion can be cleared by remembering that the MLK day is actually observed on the third Monday of January,[Read More…]
As Muslims are facing increased threat in several countries, like the unending public lynching and the recent open call for genocide by the Hindutwa militia in India, some sections of them are shrinking into their shells. Hijab or veil is one expression of this shrinking phenomena. This uniform, often black, lose covering over one’s dress, known as purdah in south[Read More…]
On this, as we approach the 77th Anniversary of the Defeat of Fascism, a small commemoration of my Father’s contribution as a Radio Operator in the Indian 8th Army in North Africa during 1944. The above picture is of my Father, who was a Radio Operator in the Indian 8th Army; slugging it out for the British Imperialists in a[Read More…]
Hrishikesh Mukherjee (1922-2006) is very widely, and fondly, remembered as one of the greatest directors, editors and story-tellers of Hindi cinema who also contributed in a smaller way to cinema of other languages. Leaving his career of teaching Maths to train under an editor of Bangla films predictably called Kenchi Da, he shifted to Hindi to learn from great masters[Read More…]
In early 2020, we saw the beginning of the COVID-19 ‘pandemic’. The world went into lockdown and even after lockdowns in various countries had been lifted, restrictions continued. Data now shows that lockdowns seemingly had limited if any positive impacts on the trajectory of COVID-19 and in 2022 the world – especially the poor – is paying an immense price[Read More…]
As we celebrate the birth anniversary (12th January) of the saffron robed monk who projected spirituality of Hinduism, the diversity and syncretic nature of India, it is very reassuring. His teachings are in total contrast to the present scenario, where many saffron robed are promoting hate and inciting violence in the name of same religion. Swami Vivekananda, the legend who[Read More…]
Quite recently, I have observed and spoken to dozens of people about the impact brought in by ongoing waves of recent pandemics in the name of Covid, Delta and Omicron. One must understand that the history of science demonstrates many more pandemics that took the toll of millions of people worldwide and in India. COVID-19 was a once-in-a-lifetime event that[Read More…]
Capitalistic Chasms and the Disenchanting Age A grotesque imagination of pluralism beholds a complex aura of experiencing diverse cultures, faiths, traditions, belief systems, existential principles, undercurrents of ideologies and imaginations. Excavating oneself through the convoluted layers of social relationships, interactions, organisations and realities can prove liberating as well as enslaving in manifold senses. Such concoctions of manoeuvred sociality and dogmatic[Read More…]
Was Mahatma Gandhi a Coward, Who Preached Non-violent Struggle Against the British Due to His Cowardice? India was attacked by Mahmud of Gazani in the 11th century. He attacked 17 times. The last time was in 1025. He robbed Somnath Mandir and carried its wealth to his own country. But none of the Hindu rulers could stop him. Later, Gori[Read More…]
“History begins in a barbarism of sense and ends in a barbarism of reflection,” says Italian Philosopher Giambattista Vico. Vico claimed that men ‘make’ their own history, and his claim had a different view of what ‘making’ means. When Dr. Abdel Latif Chalikandi—a Rome-based scholar, who serves as the Cultural Advisor, Tawasul Europe Centre for Research and Dialogue—was speaking on British Raj:[Read More…]
I have a confession to make. That I have been converted many times. From one faith to another to yet another, endlessly. And I simply love it. Sometimes I got converted through the power of a compelling idea, just by reading a wonderful book. Or watching a well-made movie or listening to a song (especially sung by Mohammad Rafi saheb).[Read More…]
Some peoples possess shamans to explain how the world works. We have charlatan economists and politicians posing as intellectuals who claim to be able to reveal the mystery of running society. The ideas of Marx did not arise out of thin air but were grew from the works of many others before him. But the purpose of this short essay is not to explore[Read More…]
When the British ordered the exclusive use of the Nagari script in school in 1880 to meet a Hindu demand in the state of Bihar, the Muslims howled. The Hindi-Urdu duel in the end exploded into Hindu-Muslim war. In free India, Hindi gained the national stature as a symbol of Hindu pride and spread nationwide like wildfire, partly thanks to[Read More…]
It has taken my slow brain a long time to figure it out but finally, as 2021 comes to an end, I have found a sure shot way of bringing about a social and political revolution in India. A transformation that will sweep away Indian society’s deep caste and class inequalities, deepen democracy and end the venal politics of hatred[Read More…]
Golden names like Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, and Desmond Tutu invariably surface on the mental canopy of world public when topics as human rights, liberation struggle, human freedom and the like, especially when those of the oppressed, suppressed, persecuted and downtrodden among coloured and black peoples go afloat. The last of the above noble souls left the[Read More…]
Photo Credit—Jan Swasthya Sahyog Recently when top Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan withdrew from surrogate advertising of smokeless tobacco (SLT), it was welcomed but with a caveat- some other popular film actors still continue to contribute to booming sales of a product that is the number one cause of a very serious oral cancer crisis in S.Asia. The Cigarettes and Other[Read More…]
This may sound either arrogant or forgetful, but I could not possibly remember the number of times I was in the same room or at the same protest as Desmond Tutu. And the main reason I know he was there is because I was there listening to him speak, often from a distance of not more than two meters or[Read More…]
“Oddly enough, it (potato) was introduced to the Himalayas by two Irishmen, captain Young of Dehra and Mussoorie and captain Kennedy of Simla, in the 1820s. The slopes of Young’s house, ‘Mullinger’, were known as his Potato Farm. Looking up old books, I was surprised to learn that the potato wasn’t known in India before the nineteenth century, and now[Read More…]
An era has ended with the passing away of an anti-apartheid hero on Sunday, December 26. Archbishop Desmond Tutu left us at the age of ninety. He was in the forefront of the struggle against brutal white minority rule in South Africa. A Nobel Peace Prize recipient, Tutu was famously known for his quotation; “If you are neutral in situations[Read More…]
By Shobha Shukla & Bobby Ramakant Covid pandemic is a grim reminder of what can go wrong when we do not work with an integrated “One Health” approach to human health, animal health, food system and climate. The critical link between these sectors, has only deepened over the years. But will our public health approach pass the litmus test of[Read More…]
It is a paradox—and a very worrying one too- that in the middle of overall high levels of prosperity the burden of mental health problems is very high in several rich countries and appears to be increasing in some important contexts. In the USA 1 in 4 adults suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year, according to[Read More…]
Comrade Raj Kishore left us at 2 in the morning on December 22nd in his village Champaran., battling illness since 2014.At time of death he was 89 years.He devoted his entire energy when alive into the liberation of the masses. Even a non Maoist or non Marxist liberal may admire his contribution towards serving the people. Tears literally flow in[Read More…]
” HAPPINESS AND WELLBEING INDICES There is an ever-growing number of research reports from global economists that go far beyond the limited metric of GDP to gauge nations’ overall happiness and wellbeing. These studies use somewhat different measurements (whether the strength of social connections or obesity rates), so rankings can vary—but this research is giving us a clearer, more meaningful[Read More…]
By Shobha Shukla & Bobby Ramakant Despite over 350 million people living with hepatitis B and C virus globally, and 3 persons dying every minute, much-needed efforts are yet to be on-track to end viral hepatitis in next 108 months (by 2030) as promised by heads of all countries in UN General Assembly (by adopting the Sustainable Development Goals). More[Read More…]
The current age is an age of absurdity. In the thesaurus, absurd is defined as “utterly or obviously senseless, illogical, or untrue; contrary to all reason or common sense; laughably foolish or false” (“absurd”). Unfortunately, one need not rely on a dictionary to point out the tension between the way one desires the world to appear and the harsh[Read More…]
Being neither a believer in gods or against believers, the existence of supernatural, gods and supernatural ultimately running the human affairs do not form part of my consciousness. Belief in supernatural also brings with it the division of this world and the other world. This world which is the human world is considered a ‘maya’ ‘an illusion’. Ultimate merging with[Read More…]
How did Islam reach the Subcontinent: through Socialization or Coercion; Trade or Invasion? It is a very important question which has a direct bearing on the social ecology in which people live their lives nowadays. It requires a fair and satisfactory answer to clear the doubts that have crept into the minds of many people owing to their not so[Read More…]
by Md Tabrez Alam & Md Afroz “Elders are not liabilities, they are asset. A Banyan tree not only survives but shelters many under it shadow to grow harmoniously” Introduction Ageing is a natural course of development and increasing longevity has wonderful human achievement. An active secure and healthy ageing population can present enormous contribution to the society. This demographic[Read More…]
Hi! I’m Aniketh Brian Madhok, an 18-year-old boy with a smiley face, little mischevious, fun loving and always polite with others. Living in the metropolitan city of Kolkata in West Bengal, India. I am currently studying in 12th Standard and am about to take my Term-1 ISC exams. It has been a year since I have not paid any heed[Read More…]
by Thomas Klikauer & Meg Young Under the motto, “a different world is possible, a different economy is needed” – a German language magazine called Lunapark was born in 2008. It is dedicated to providing a much needed critique of the global economy. Perhaps as a pre-reflection of Glasgow’s 2021 Blah-Blah-Blah-COP26 PR-pageant, Germany’s failed environmental record is on stage, Lunapark started with the political economy on global warming.[Read More…]
Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Day is 12 December Stopping antimicrobial resistance by promoting infection prevention, responsible and appropriate use of antimicrobial medicines in human health, livestock and food systems, is the bedrock for promoting universal health coverage. Failing this, the absence of efficacious antimicrobials will effectively return the world to the pre-antibiotic era before the 1920s when lives were lost[Read More…]
by Shobha Shukla and Bobby Ramakant #EndTobacco is an essential part of the bedrock for Universal Health Coverage Can we deliver on the promise of health for all unless we fix the gaping and widening punctures that are causing epidemic-proportion of preventable diseases and untimely deaths? No one needs to suffer from preventable illnesses or die from curable diseases. Tobacco[Read More…]
I was in PM Modi’s constituency witnessing some changes and listening to demands for changes- all for the better. I got a chance to attend a public dialogue on Front-of-Pack Labelling (FOPL). FOPL is similar to the warning labels in tobacco products informing the consumers what they are about to intake. Sub-optimal or poor nutrition is escalating diet related non[Read More…]
India’s responses to HIV/AIDS through the national AIDS Programme have been widely acclaimed as the most successful public health intervention in its history since the Independence. From 1992 onwards we have witnessed a concerted effort in all fronts to tackle the AIDS crisis in a radical manner by a participatory framing of health discourse and practice. An effective and active[Read More…]
When we know how to prevent HIV transmission, and how to keep every person living with HIV healthy, then how can one fathom deaths of at least 680,000 people due to AIDS-related illnesses in 2020 worldwide? And how can one explain, at least 1.5 million new HIV infections occurring globally in 2020? “Every new HIV infection is a reality check[Read More…]
The caste system in India has long been considered as “the most resilient and adaptive system of inequality and oppression ever invented, the most inhuman too, even excluding sections of people from the very domain of the human, of the moral and the spiritual, of sociality, fraternity, etc.” Joseph Tharamangalam, Emeritus Professor of Sociology and Anthropology, Mount St. Vincent University[Read More…]
Poor diet is responsible for more deaths worldwide than any other risk factor, and is a leading cause of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Global estimates suggest that almost 2.3 billion children and adults are overweight. The growing availability of ultra-processed foods, which contain high levels of sugars, sodium, saturated fats and refined carbohydrates, is a key contributor[Read More…]
Hasan Azizul Huq (1939-2021), one of the leading Bangladeshi writers, passed away on 15 November 2021, leaving behind him an exceptional body of works. He was mainly a short story writer, but he also wrote three novels and many essays. His first book, Samudrer Swapna, Shiter Aranya, a collection of short stories, was published in 1964. Each volume he published[Read More…]
The 97th death anniversary of Abadi Banu Begum passed subduedly and unobtrusively, much like every other year in the past. Bi-Amma, which was the popular sobriquet bestowed upon her by comrades, was a stand out marvel of astonishing courage and patriotism in India’s independence saga. She broke the religious taboo for feminist activism to inspire thousands of Muslim women to take to[Read More…]
by Sandeep Pandey, Seema Muniz and Gopal Krishna Verma Some people are disheartened with the disruption in children’s education due to the menace of Covid and the successive lockdowns. While a number of children are getting used to attending online classes, their counterparts from the weaker socio-economic backgrounds continue to struggle either because of unfamiliarity with technology or because of [Read More…]
by Shobha Shukla, Bobby Ramakant When medicines become resistant, even curable diseases are at risk of becoming incurable Antimicrobial resistance occurs when microbes such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites no longer respond to medicines. This makes common infections harder to treat and increases the risk of disease spread, severe illness and death. That is why India and other[Read More…]
The following article on the life of President John F. Kennedy, and his assassination on this date, November 22, 1963, is the lead piece in the eighth issue of Garrison: The Journal of History and Deep Politics that has just been published: “The Political Assassinations of the 1960s.” From JFK, RFK, MLK, and Malcolm X, to Hammarskjold and Lumumba, the 1960s were[Read More…]
The Corona crisis was becoming more dangerous with every passing day. At that time, I was living in my dormitory in Moscow. I was planning to come to India in March 2020 to attend Holi. By the time I started to look for flights, the crisis had already changed travel policies. Two weeks quarantine upon arrival with very less clarity[Read More…]
It was Sunday, November 13 in 2016. We had gathered at Holland Park in Surrey to protest against the growing attacks on religious minorities and political dissidents in India under the current right wing Hindu nationalist government in New Delhi. The keynote speaker at the event held by Radical Desi was the visiting[Read More…]
by Shobha Shukla and Bobby Ramakant Medicines which aim to relieve pain and suffering, may cure us of diseases and avert untimely deaths, are at increasing risk of becoming ineffective against disease-causing microbes. Antimicrobial resistance occurs when microbes such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites no longer respond to medicines. This makes common infections harder to treat, more expensive to[Read More…]
November 19, Friday is Guru Nanak Jayanti. The great saints of Bhakti movement combined in their personality and work very precious aspects of social reform and deep spirituality. Their message of social reform was often much ahead of their times and the strength of deep spirituality was needed to take this forward. When confronting tyrants and oppressors Guru Nanak and[Read More…]
A two-day seminar cum webinar convened by the World Buddhist Culture Trust brought together a select group of academics and researchers as well as concerned citizens to discuss what is “human mind”, its descriptions as portrayed in various spiritual texts, its functions in tandem with other faculties and problems facing humanity. The elusive “mind”, it was noted, has been sought[Read More…]
The corona crisis has shown us a stark reality that was otherwise ignored for a long time. Our health systems and healthcare facilities are inadequate, overly expensive, and largely out of reach. When someone in our families falls sick then we get bothered about familial health. Running between doctors, pharmacies and pathologies our budgets get imbalanced, yet we do not[Read More…]
“The President’s been shot!” he shouted, clamoring his way down the stairs in the dorm. The upper-classman! I was making my way to the third floor, and he was rushing down, letting our small world know—startled, young faces peeping from behind closed doors, aghast and in wonder. I got to my room, and my 2 freshman roommates were staring[Read More…]
Mannu Bhandari, the eminent and popular Hindi writer is no more. She passed away on Monday November 15 at Gurugram, near Delhi, at the age of 90. Apart from her countless readers, she will be missed by many teachers and students, particularly those at Miranda House, Delhi University where she taught Hindi literature for a long time. She won early[Read More…]
As the pandemic has demonstrated, global supply chains with multiple dependencies are extremely fragile and collapse easily. This has been particularly the case for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), that has seen the prices of medicine skyrocketing. The need of the hour is not only to build alternative and localized supply chains which are also environmentally sustainable, but also to draw[Read More…]
Rarely is the pragmatist admired. Be it in policy or politics, such a figure induces suspicion, a concern that principles will have to be subordinated to broader goals. True dreamers and visionaries, for all their glaring faults, can take the accolades; the pragmatists can be given lower pegging. These differences have proven stark with the late FW de Klerk, South[Read More…]
When Surya Sen sacrificed his life at the age of only 40 for the freedom of India in 1934, he had already succeeded in inspiring a very large number of youth to devote their life to the freedom movement. Although he had been subjected to extremely painful torture before being hanged on 12 January, he was completely unwavering in his[Read More…]
Born 1949 June 1 – Died on 2021 Sep 29 Com.P.Suryanarayana, President, Organisation for Protection of Democratic Rights-OPDR, Andhra Pradesh (AP). Nearly 25 leaders of Girijan, rural poor, teachers, and other organisations paid rich and revolutionary tributes to Com.PSN in an inspiring meeting to pay homage to him held on 10th October 2021 in Srikakulam and that indicates[Read More…]
For most of civilization physical labor, that labor which creates a tangible object, has been seen as an unfortunate task done merely for the sake of acquiring the necessaries of life. The Greeks and Romans in large part relegated this sort of work to slaves. The Middle Ages tell stories of kings, philosophers, theologians, and priests, but not of workers.[Read More…]
S N Subbarao is no more, born in Karnataka, he breathed his last in Jaipur (Rajasthan), Jaura (Madhya Pradesh) became the spectator of his last rites and then his ashes were flown into the river at Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh). The passing away of this soldier of peace and goodwill, popularly known as Bhaiji, at the age of 92, was like[Read More…]
Is it not a paradox if a preventable, diagnosable, treatable, and curable disease becomes a top killer? Till Covid-19 struck our world, Tuberculosis (TB) – a disease that can be prevented, diagnosed and treated – was the most deadly infectious disease worldwide. Covid-19 pandemic has also adversely impacted the fight against TB, as well as other diseases. Not surprisingly, the[Read More…]
Eminent Gandhian S.N.Subba Rao is no more. He breathed his last at the age of 92 in Jaipur on October 27. He will be remembered by countless people for spreading the message of justice, peace and non-violence for over seven decades, but above all he will be remembered by those who had the cherished the experience of attending his youth[Read More…]
“General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that education is the foundation of a century-old plan. It is hoped that the People’s Education Press will focus on the fundamental task of fostering morality, adhere to the correct political direction, carry forward the fine traditions, promote reforms and innovations, and create excellent teaching materials with Bacon casting soul, enlightening wisdom, and making new[Read More…]
The global (and largest) lung health conference opened with not one but at least three major scientific announcements. The 52nd Union World Conference on Lung Health was marked with the announcement of three major scientific developments that can potentially impact the global response to tuberculosis (TB), the world’s second deadliest infectious disease after Covid-19. Researchers from the University of Cape[Read More…]
“Vexilla regis prodeunt Inferni” – Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy: The Inferno Try to look ahead and see if you can see what’s been coming for decades. Try to climb higher and see the beautiful things that Heaven bears, where we came forth, and once more see the stars and raise a banner of resistance to the King of Hell and[Read More…]
With the advent of the Black Lives Matter movement, together with the emergence of Critical Race Theory, the spotlight has once again been shone on the heinous institution that was slavery and its aftermath, racial discrimination. Could anything be worse than a system in which a human being becomes the property of another, to do with as the slave owner[Read More…]
On 27th September we commemorated the 10th death anniversary of the late playwright Gursharan Singh.Punjab has never witnessed a revolutionary theatre activist who has penetrated the soul of the Punjabi masses in such depth Be it in the era of the Naxalbari uprising, the Emergency, the Khalistani movement or period of Globalization, he kept the flag of revolutionary resistance afloat[Read More…]
Terror, terrorism, terrorists Terror is the emotion of “extreme fear” caused by the threat or use of violence. Terror is also an instrument to cause fear, “a weapon of the impotent, the disenfranchised and the unorganized in the face of profound grievance“. Causing extreme fear using the instrument of terror are both age-old. However, only in recent times has terrorism[Read More…]
On September 26th, we commemorated the 35th martyrdom anniversary of Comrade Baldev Singh Mann, who succumbed after waging a valiant battle against the Khalistani terrorism. On the night of 26th September he fell to the bullets of the Khalistani Commando force. He was the Amritsar district secretary of the C.P.I. (M.L) Chandra Pulla Reddy group. and editor of party magazine[Read More…]
All parts and aspects of life have been occupied by capitals. This is the broader picture. This is one of the facts from reality that composes context of life of people in almost all lands. This is one of the brutal facts that dominate people in exploitative societies. The dominance is so much powerful and so much shrewd that the[Read More…]
A cultural transmission or meme is an element of culture (e.g., a perception, value or belief) that is copied and spread virally from one individual to another among people who find favor in their contents. Cultures generate memes. Thanks to science, a culture presents us with many memes that are reality oriented or based upon objective, compelling evidence. But other memes that are deluded are also promulgated. From a[Read More…]
A picture containing text, person, person, suit Description automatically generatedOne year and 10 months ago when first case of corona virus was reported in Wuhan, China, entire world was terrified because no one knew if we have any medicine that will work against it. Possibly our worst fears came true and we witnessed the horrendous impact of the pandemic. One[Read More…]
“True religion is a revolutionary force: it is an inveterate enemy of oppression, privilege, and injustice.” Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (Justice, Diversity, Enemy) Many philosophers, writers, thinkers and critics have, over the centuries, handed down a wealth of writings and speeches on life and its existence. From Democritus, Plato, Aristotle, etc., to modern thinkers like Marx, Engels, Lenin, Rosa Luxembourg, Mao, everyone[Read More…]
Pankaj Pushkar in conversation with Pramod Ranjan Pankaj Pushar: What has been your relationship with languages during your educational journey? How do you relate to different languages? Which language(s) do you use in your different activities? Pramod Ranjan: I was born into a family which spoke the Magahi language. I spent my childhood at my maternal grandparents’ place. My Nana’s[Read More…]
Together the two, on both sides of the Himalayas, is a vast mass of land with almost half of the world population, huge resources, wide varieties of ecologies, agro-ecological and climate zones, and rich with by-gone civilizations fossilized in history. Mountain ranges stand high between them. But the uniformity that once put them on the same plane is exploitative systems[Read More…]
When I was young, Helen was supposed to be a sex bomb in Hindi films. She played the role of vamp. But then, there were also others for the vamp roles. So, she stuck to her dancing roles. She was a good dancer. I still cannot understand why she was considered as a sex bomb. Perhaps, for the mainstream audience,[Read More…]
It is indeed a breakthrough scientific achievement that we Diagram Description automatically generated with medium confidencenow have the first-ever and only malaria vaccine to prevent malaria in children. This is an important (and long-awaited) addition to existing range of scientifically proven effective methods to prevent malaria. While we celebrate this moment of yet another milestone scientific feat we must remind[Read More…]
There was a time when time was time and space and speed had some human meaning, for people lived within the limits of the natural world of which they were a part. As Albert Camus said, “In our madness, we push back the eternal limits, and at once dark Furies swoop down upon us to destroy.” The destruction is now[Read More…]
To celebrate 152 Jayanti of Mahatma Gandhi, most of the political parties from the Left to Right (barring a section of Ambedkarites) including secular parties are busy in celebrating Gandhi’s Jayanti with much compassion and commitment. In this respect, civil society and public intellectuals have written several articles in the newspapers and posted messages on social media to express their[Read More…]
A whiff of fresh air caresses my cheekbones as I see the leaves sway periodically from right to left. My eyes search in both the direction of the road to look at the cycles pass by whilst absorbing the warmth of the sun for the first time in days. The scent of wildflowers fills the air as I walk my[Read More…]
73 years after his death, Mahatma Gandhi and his messages continue to be remembered in the context of many possible solutions for problems of a deeply troubled world. His birthday October 2 is a time for events in his memory in many parts of world, a time also for re-emphasizing his key precept of non-violence as a way of life.[Read More…]
On the occasion of 152nd Gandhi Jayanti, 2nd October 2021, in tandem with Azadi ka Amrut Maha Utsav launched on the 75th Independence Day what thoughts flood our hearts as we survey happenings and events in the country and the plight of humanity. On the one hand is the “India of My Dreams” that Mahatma Gandhi had expressed and[Read More…]
A memoir is a sort of autobiography. You record only those things that have affected you. You don’t do any research for it, except occasionally to check a date or fact. You write what you remember. Our Home I was born in Mysore in 1943 and we moved to Indore in 1945. I left Indore to study electronics at IIT[Read More…]
Economic ideas of Mahatma Gandhi are most remembered for his emphasis on village self-reliance, a far cry from globalization. Despite this, as his birth anniversary is observed on October 2, a world troubled by many discontents of globalization may find it useful to consult Gandhian ideas for reducing them and getting some clues to important reforms as well. Mahatma Gandhi[Read More…]
While the European Union votes to phase out animal research, the United States wants more. In the last two years, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has invested nearly $29 million to breed more monkeys for biomedical research, with an additional $7.5 million to be spent by October. The investments, which include infrastructure improvements at the U.S. National Primate Research[Read More…]
On 22 September 2020, André Vltchek, quietly passed away – on a night-ride from the Black Sea in Turkey to Istanbul, accompanied by his wife, Rossie. He just fell asleep in the back seat of a chauffeur-driven car and didn’t wake up. His legacy is diverse, heavy in substance and revealing – revealing about the world, about the dark forces[Read More…]
At world level an increasing number of eminent doctors have been expressing anguish since the advent of COVID-19 that that they are under increasing pressure to work only in the narrow confines of what is imposed from above, and when they they try to act on the basis of the best of their judgment then they face undue opposition and[Read More…]
In an increasingly convoluted world of religions and cultures, it is imperative to develop and foster social harmony so as to meet the challenges posed by diversity. Recognizing religious diversity and differences is quite important today, and it is quite significant that all religions sustain and reinforce mutual understanding and empathy through dialogue. They also have an obligation to uphold[Read More…]
Diminishing return as a concept- Unmixed blessing is a rarity. It is difficult to find in social science a concept that takes care of everything. The notion of intersectionality is one such case. It is supposed to be an advancement over social stratification categories like race, caste, class, gender. However, if we look closely, we can see that it has[Read More…]
September 28 is the 113th birth anniversary of the most loved and remembered freedom fighter of India Shahid Bhagat Singh. It is also the 30th death anniversary of Shahid Shankar Guha Niyogi. Subhash Chandra Bose while broadcasting his message to people of India from his Azad Hind Fauz camps had referred to Mahatma Gandhi as the Father of Nation ([Read More…]
Today, September 28, is the 30th death anniversary of Comrade Shankar Guha Niyogi (February 14, 1943 – September 28, 1991). He was murdered by the agents of the capitalist class. He was just 48 years old! In spite of the efforts of good lawyers like Kannabiran, his murderers went unpunished because of the collusion between the state, bureaucracy and judiciary[Read More…]
October 2, this year,is not only observed as the birthday of Gandhi, it is also a World Ostomy Day. Ostomy is an artificial opening during operation in the organ of the body such as a colostomy, ileostomy or gastrostomy , a stoma. Ostomy surgery is a life saving procedure that allows bodily waste pass through a surgically created stoma on[Read More…]
Kamla Bhasin, who passed away in wee hours of Saturday, was a social scientist, development professional, poet, author and a stalwart of women’s movement in India and South Asia who advocated gender equality in every walk of life. Throughout her life she has been[Read More…]
Kamla Bhasin passed away in the early hours today ( September 25 2021) at the age of 75. She will be remembered by many people and several organizations in South Asia (and elsewhere) to whom she reached out at several levels with many-sided contributions. She made valuable and original contributions to feminist thinking and theory, particularly in the context of[Read More…]
By October 5, 2021 English language life in India is 204 years. For the last few years the celebration of Indian English Day on that day is catching up. Ever since the first English medium school started in the then Calcutta in 1817 on October 5, India never allowed that language to die. It has been growing and growing not[Read More…]
On September 9th the world commemorated the 45th death anniversary of Chairman Mao Tse Tung. His spirit virtually engulfed the entire globe penetrating the hearts of the opressed masses in depth unparalleled by any political leader. His path breaking experiments defined a new epoch in mankind. The era is still that of Lenin’s or that of Imperialism but is Mao[Read More…]
Many parts of the world observed today, September 22, as the international car-free day, a day for freedom and safety for pedestrians. The United Nations has supported priority for pedestrians. But the Indian government is busy encouraging cars, it has just announced a productivity linked incentive (PLI) scheme to subsidise the industry to the tune of thousands of crores of[Read More…]
Today, September 22 is the World Car Free Day. It is celebrated in many cities around the world to create awareness about how our locality will look and feel like without cars. It started on an ad hoc basis after the 1973 oil crisis. Only in 2000 it became a self-standing day held on September 22. On this day a[Read More…]
Comrade Gananath Patro contributed more to sowing the seeds of the mass revolutionary movement in Orissa, than any comrade. He sacrificed many a lucrative career to serve the people. Few comrades were ever as down to earth or simple, or as astute in how to tackle specific situations. Till his last breath he strived to sharpen the sword of mass[Read More…]
A report released recently by NCD Alliance during the Annual Global Week for Action on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), calls for integration of NCDs prevention and care into global health initiatives and universal health coverage. Jointly produced by the George Institute for Global Health and NCD Alliance, the report makes a call for breaking down the existing silos in global health,[Read More…]
India has suffered for a long time from significant levels of malnutrition and hunger. It is very important to give high priority to rducing this. Unfortunately, some fiercely propagated solutions such as mandatory fortification of staple food products and promotion of GM crops are motivated more by promotion of big business interests than by actual reduction of malnutrition. In fact[Read More…]
The Covid pandemic has hard drilled the lesson why health and social security of each one of us is inter-dependent on health and social security of one another. But do we see more equity (or inequity) in the Covid response, such as the rollout of the vaccination worldwide? Inequitable distribution of vaccine, diagnostics, oxygen, personnel protective equipment, and other necessary[Read More…]
On July 6th this year, we commemorated the 45th death anniversary of Marshall Chu Teh.,Few Comrades ever so creatively applied the military line of chairman Mao or illustrated the spiritual metamorphosis within a revolutionary as Chu.. His name will be permanently enshrined amongst the heroes of the Chinese Revolution. and great military or Communists in world history. Today his spirit[Read More…]
Earlier this year on 13th March, we commemorated the 50th death anniversary of Comrade Sushital Roy Chowdhury,,who died in mysterious circumstances in 1971. Formally he is declared to have died out of heart attack. Few comrades as valiantly waged a crusade to confront left adventurism fostered by the C.P.I.(ML)led by Charu Mazumdar and establish the massline.Sadly even today sections of[Read More…]
Chairman Gonzalo or Abimael Guzman is no more. His was not a natural death but an assassination by the Peruvian state. Exactly 29 years ago on September 12th he was captured by the Peruvian police and placed in the Callao prison.Inspite of a sustained worldwide campaign to demand his release, the Peruvian state kept him entrenched within the jail walls.[Read More…]
On 13th September we commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Lin Biao,due to a plane crash in 1971 , when allegedly attempting to flee to the Soviet Union. Lin is one of the most controversial or complex and impactful characters of the Communist Movement. Few leaders more befitted the role of a Dr Jekyll and a Mr Hyde.[Read More…]
The death of dreams was considered the most dangerous. Avtar Singh Sandhu ‘Pash’ was a supporter of expressed socio-political freedom. Pash is known as the poet who composed his revolutionary poems and questioned the system. Pash started writing poetry at an early age. By the time the Khalistani movement in Punjab reached its peak, he was opposed to the movement[Read More…]
Keshav Desiraju, India’s former health secretary who made a lasting contribution to public health in India, breathed his last on September 5. He died from ‘acute coronary syndrome’. He inherited the scholarly legacy of his grandfather, India’s much-admired second President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, and contributed at least two very important books which reflected the diversity of his interests. He will be[Read More…]
Gail Omvedt was a towering figure in the social sciences in India for decades. Author of over 25 books and a series of well-received columns for the Hindu of yesteryears, she was also an incisive and insightful analyst of Indian society, and a grounded grassroots activist as well. Despite being born and educated in the US, she made India her[Read More…]
Tricontinental published their “One Hundred Years of the Communist Movement in India” on September 1, 2020 [1]. We are dealing with it only snappily. From here one can learn what may be called a ‘left’ way to rewrite history of the ‘communist’ movement; a ‘left way’, that is certainly different rom a ‘communist’ way – where the ‘left’ stands for decent[Read More…]
Around a month on August 5th, ago we commemorated the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Saroj Dutta,which was landmark or black day in the history of the Indian Communist movement. Whatever his gross errors as a Marxist revolutionary, his spirit will shimmer for ever like a lotus in full bloom, in the annals of the Indian Communist Movement. Without[Read More…]
Com. Ramnath left us a few days ago at the age of 83. He suffered a heart attack and passed away in his sleep early in the morning of August 31st. He was unwell for the last several years but his health had deteriorated severely recently. Without doubt he played an integral role in the history of the Indian Communist[Read More…]
Kerala has given birth to many women achievers in the last century. This is a quick analysis based on case studies of three women achievers, from the areas of science, politics, and law. Though these three achievers are selected purposively and there could be some possibility of a selection bias, this analysis offers some key insights. ANNA MANI (23 August[Read More…]
On April 12th earlier this year the Communist revolutionary movement commemorated the 12th death anniversary of veteran Comrade Gundahar Murmu. He passed away leaving his wife, four daughters, son, relatives and comrades but his memories will be embedded forever in the revolutionary movement like an inextinguishable red light shimmering. Few comrades ever from West Bengal staged such an invaluable crusade[Read More…]
Recently, I was involved in a discussion about the things we do and do not teach our children. I’ve already said quite a bit on this subject. But after talking with a few other people about education, and especially secondary education, I realized I approached the subject from the assumption that the purpose of school is to train the mind in skills[Read More…]
On December 6th, 1988, Comrade Purushottam Pali left us. Without doubt he was one of the most defining and inspiring comrades in the work of the Indian Communist movement in the tribal regions. Few comrades in the forests India illuminated the spark of liberation or shimmered the spark of Marxism-Leninism Mao thought, at the scale of Comrade Pali. Throughout his[Read More…]
Amid chaotic politics and anti-immigrant and refugee sentiments, Stadio Olimpico in Rome seemed like an oasis of social and cultural harmony. AS Roma and Raja Casablanca fans gathered in their thousands on a hot Saturday evening to cheer for their teams in a friendly match, the first in the Olimpico for nearly a year and a half. The guest team is a[Read More…]
Earlier this year on 10th February the civil liberties movement or democratic rights movement commemorated the birth centenary of Comrade KVSN Prasad Rao,,who at the time of his death was the president of the Organization for Protection for Democratic Rights(OPDR).He perished due to accidental injuries on 10th October ,1986.His contribution will shimmer forever in the annals of the civil liberties[Read More…]
It was in 2009 I got a chance to meet this veteran artist and visionary who spend his life to fulfilment till the end, Dr.Vayala Vasudevan Pillai. One evening Jean was asked to do a video shoot of Thayambaka of Mattannur Sankarankutty at the Vighneswara temple in Vazhuthacaud and since he wanted assistance, he asked me to join him. We[Read More…]
On 23rd August, we commemorated the 34th death anniversary of Samar Sen, one of the most creative and dynamic persons in Indian history. His writings and poems had the subtle touch which geniuses possess traversing almost surreal regions. What was most pertinent is how he formulated the path he wished to take and how in each juncture, he confronted the[Read More…]
Rational thinking and scientific truths will have disastrous consequences sometimes where authoritarian state and irrational society turn into serious enemies. The All India Peoples Science Network, a network of over 40 Peoples Science Movements, has declared August 20 as the National Scientific Temper Day. The reason is lack of reasoned thinking. Greek philosopher Socrates was given death sentence, which he[Read More…]
Tripta Lahiri’s book “ Maid in India” on what it means to be a domestic help in an average middle or upper class Indian households is a surprisingly accurate one. It does not paint a binary black and white picture – maids good and noble and employers all evil and cruel. It presents a balanced picture of the benevolent and[Read More…]
Dr.Gail Omvedt, (81) one of the greatest scholars on caste studies passed away on 24 August 2021 evening in her village Kesegaon Maharashtra. She has pioneered caste studies having come as a student from America and settled down in India in the 1970s. She later married Bharat Patankar a Marxists scholar, activist; both of them lived in his village all[Read More…]
Gail Omvedt is no more. She passed away today i.e. 25th August, 2021 in Kasegaon. On August 18th, I went to see her along with my dear friend Rahul Nirmal. Her condition was deteriorating and her partner Mr Bharat Patankar was doing everything to serve her at their ancestral house in Kasegaon, Maharasthra where Gail and Bharat decided to live[Read More…]
The killing of Socrates left a stain on the fabric of Athenian society, a stain it nearly expanded 80 years later with similar threats of impiety towards an Aristotle determined not to let Athens “sin twice against philosophy.”[i] This original sin against philosophy has been immortalized in philosophy classrooms for millenniums to come – turning for philosophy[Read More…]
In 1988 on August 22nd, I became the 16th Indian to swim the English Channel and in this work I am summing up the challenge involved and how its experience or training for it has so many similarities with that of a the life of a Marxist or social revolutionary. Few challenges are as daunting as swimming the English Channel.[Read More…]
Religious revival and highly charged conflicts in a shrinking world make it difficult for people of competing faiths to live together. Fundamentalists of all creeds exhibit a striking commonality; an inability to think rationally. Menachem Begin bombed the King Edward Hotel in Jerusalem 1945, communal riots in Jabalpur India in 1961, religious riots in Beirut in 1983, Babri[Read More…]
Vidya Bhushan Rawat speaks to Mr Raj Mohan, lyricist, singer and musician in Sarnami Bhojpuri Rootlessness is a serious crisis of the current generation as most enjoy the gated life styles surrounded by ‘gazettes and ‘connectivity’ where any guest is unwelcome and you are lost in the virtual world without ever caring or even thinking of your neighbours or near[Read More…]
“A house constitutes a body of images that give mankind proofs or illusions of stability.” – Gaston Bachelard, The Poetics of Space There is a vast and growing gulf between the world’s rich and poor. An obscene gulf. If we can read houses, they will confirm this. They offer a visible lesson in social class. Houses stand before us like books[Read More…]
It was a Marathi Book- (Einsteinche Manovishv) – by Dr. Mo. Ra. Gunye, Research Scientist from Bhaba Atomic Research Centre in his Book (513 pages, studded with 18 Chapters a masterpiece of Literature as well), appropriately summarizes Value of Albert Einstein’s contributions in his Book, (Psychological Universe of Einstein- 1997) which prompted me to write Einstein’s Life Journey, though I[Read More…]
Trepan Singh Chauhan, a great activist-author of Uttarakhand, left us last year (2020) on August 13, leaving behind a rich legacy of activism and writings that will serve as a source of inspiration for a long time. He died when he was only 48, and during his potentially most productive years he suffered from serious health problems and from the[Read More…]
The Statesman, May 2 1908: “The Railway station was crowded to see the boy. A mere boy of 18 or 19 years old, who looked quite determined. He came out of a first class compartment and walked all the way to phaeton, kept for him outside, like a cheerful boy who knows no anxiety… on taking his seat the boy[Read More…]
On behalf of myself and of Federation of Independent Trade Unions-FITU, I wish to place on record our whole-hearted and deep condolences at the demise of Com. Vilas Sonawane, a dedicated and respected leader and activist of several people’s movements in India, particularly in the state of Maharashtra. Com.Vilas was of 69 years age, was suffering from parkinsonism and some[Read More…]
Recently I watched a film with the title “ Project Marathwada”. The story is about an old farmer from Nandurbar , a small town in Maharashtra. He wants to meet the Chief Minister. His son has recently committed suicide due to mounting debt and so have so many other farmers in the area. He is unable to meet the Chief[Read More…]
A Short Profile of A Muslim Freedom Fighter — Maqbool Ahmed Jamaie India attained its independence on 15th of August, 1947 from British colonialism due to the combined and united efforts of all the communities of Indian sub-continent irrespective of their numbers – bigger or smaller — Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and others. The known Muslim Poet-philosopher of the sub-continent,[Read More…]
Art- loving people of Bangladesh, and many other parts of the world, will recall the memory of the famous artist Sheikh Mohammad Sultan, popularly known at SM Sultan marking his 97th anniversary of birth. Narail district administration and SM Sultan Foundation have jointly taken programmes to mark the day. The programmes include Quaran Khani, placing floral wreaths at the grave[Read More…]
Some of the most hearwarming memories of the recent Olympic Games for India will remain of sportspersons from humble backgrounds overcoming very heavy odds to perform very well at the biggest international sports event. Whether their hard work and perseverence resulted in medals or not, the great effort they put in won widespread admiration. The most obvious example is that[Read More…]
Recent scientific advancements have brought to the fore the promise of more effective and long-term solutions to help people living with HIV to thrive and not just survive. Today we have a buffet of HIV prevention options (such as, oral daily PrEP, once-a-month vaginal dapivirine ring for women, 2-monthly long-acting injectable) along with a bouquet of improved treatment modalities (monthly[Read More…]
Padma Sachdev, a great writer and upholder of human values, breathed her last at Mumbai on August 4 at the age of 81. She leaves behind her husband, Surinder Singh, a great singer of the famous Singh Bandhu duo, and daughter Meeta Sachdev. Several eminent persons including Karan Singh and Lata Mangeshkar, with whom she shared a very afffectionate and[Read More…]
Poems for Lenin. That was the title of a collection of poems written by Satish Kalsekar, noted Marathi poet, in 1977. His passing way on July 24 is a great loss for the Left movement and literature at the national level because he built bridges with writers from other languages. His death was widely mourned with tributes flowing in from[Read More…]
Canons of Character from Shambhu Chandra Vidyaratna’s Vidyasagar Jeevan-Charit O Bhramaniras (This is part II of a 2-part article on one of the leading figures of the 19th-century Bengal renaissance- the scholar, educationist, humanitarian and social reformer, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar. (Read Part I ) The translations presented here, and possible future installments are episodic excerpts extracted from the biographical text[Read More…]
I would like to be seen as someone who is down to earth, caring and kind. Just one among the people who values humans in their struggles through life and stands for justice. Hence the ideas of success which try to show lives of successful people cut off from the rest of society makes little meaning for me. Living a[Read More…]
Premier Zhou En Lai was one of the greatest revolutionary leaders and Marxists of all time. A month ago we commemorated his 45th death anniversary. It is hard to envisage how a person so embedded in mandarin background could pull out of its clutches to tread the life of a proletarian revolutionary. No Comrade so firmly stood by Chairman Mao[Read More…]
The passing away of Comrade Vilas Sonawane today is a huge loss to Dalit- OBC-Pasmanda movement all over the country. He was one of the very few who were extremely articulate and well read on the issue. Apart from that, his own experience of working with Communist Party of India (Marxist) gave him enough understanding of what ails our socio-political[Read More…]
Vasantada Ramalingachari,was one of the major leaders of the Srikakulam Girijan Movement. and a central Commitee member of the Communist Party Re-Organization Centre of India(Marxist-Leninist) Although martyred 16 years ago in 2003 on November 24th his memories are still embedded in many a comrade’s mind ,like a red light shimmering within it. .In-spite of belonging to such a humble background[Read More…]
A few days ago, I happened to visit an ATM to withdraw some cash. The ATM was located in a busy marketplace and in a narrow space between two shops. The machine had to be reached by climbing a short flight of steps. At the glass fronted entrance there was a notice which referred to a Reserve Bank circular advising[Read More…]
Unpacking Social Disruption Social disruption is a radical change, and it will result in a breakdown of social life. Often it happens suddenly. An example of a change that is not social disruption is the transition of ‘family’ from ‘joint family system’ to ‘nuclear family system’. Since it is a gradual change, people get sufficient time to adapt and continue their lives[Read More…]
August 1, 2021, was the 13th death anniversary of comrade Harkishan Singh Surjeet. Born into a Bassi Jat family in the Punjabi village of Bundala on March 23, 1916, Surjeet began his revolutionary career influenced by the socialist revolutionary Bhagat Singh. In 1930 – at the age of 15 – he joined Bhagat’s Naujawan Bharat Sabha. On the first anniversary[Read More…]
World Pest Day is also known as World Pest Awareness Day, is celebrated on June 6 every year. The day is dedicated to spreading awareness of pest management among people around the world. The first World Pest Day was celebrated on June 6, 2017, at Beijing Hotel, China. The explorer of this day was the Chinese Pest Control Association. It[Read More…]
Capitalism is deeply unjust. It is a system under which labour power has itself become a commodity and is bought and sold on the market like any other object of exchange. A condition of neo-slavery like this has been historically presupposed by the concentration of ownership of means of production in the hands of a minority class and the consequent[Read More…]
It was 40 years ago when the first case of HIV infection was diagnosed. Since then, 77.5 million people have been infected with the virus and 34 million people have died from AIDS-related causes. While a lot has been achieved in terms of providing lifesaving antiretroviral treatment to save lives, we still lost 690,000 people living with HIV to AIDS-related[Read More…]
Cricket writer and former cricket correspondent of ‘The Times’ John Woodcock left us a few days ago, just on the verge of turning 95 in August. It is hard to describe the magnitude of affection cricketers, writers and enthusiasts of the game expressed for him. The game truly lost an ornament. In his schooldays he revealed adept skill in games[Read More…]
Today the cricket world celebrates the 85th birthday of arguably the greatest cricketer ever, Sir Garfield Aubrun Sobers. His arrival on the cricket field was the equivalent of a prophet arriving, as though God had sent him to play cricket. None took all-round cricketing genius to such superlative heights. Sobers simply transcended or explored realms noone ever touched in the[Read More…]
Both Comrades died in July, and widely remembered on the occasion. This article is published to mark the occasion of com TN’s death on July 28, 1976. DV Rao died in 1984 July. DV Rao wrote several memorial articles on TN, bringing out some aspects of his life and work. Both TN and DV Rao were renowned communist revolutionary leaders[Read More…]
Great strides have been made in HIV prevention, treatment and care, since the first case of the viral infection was reported 40 years ago. Thanks to the untiring efforts of the HIV community, activists, and medical fraternity, 74% (27.5 million) of the 37.7 million people living with HIV are able to access the lifesaving antiretroviral therapy today. But the governments’[Read More…]
This is another conversation with Thiru K Veermani which was recorded at Periyar Thidal, Chennai at the headquarters of Dravidar Kajhgam on November 1st, 2019. K Veeramani : Interview Part II Watch Part I of the Interview Thiru K Veeramani is the ideological disciple of EVR Periyar and one of the senior most leaders of the Dravidian movement at the[Read More…]
Recently I had the opportunity to watch the Hindi film adaptation of Jaywant Dalvi’s famous Marathi play “ Sandhya Chhaya”. Set in the Mumbai (then Bombay) of the 1970s, it deals with the challenges of empty nesters. The play has just two characters – an elderly couple ( endearingly called “nana” and “nani”) who live in a large but empty[Read More…]
On July 24th, 2008 Comrade Arvind left us, after a sudden illness. Today we commemorate Arvind’s 13th death anniversary. It is a travesty that the movement was robbed of one of it’s most creative exponents. His life was reminiscent of Lotus blooming in full, radiating the spirit of revolution. .Although he left us so early the revered comrade crystallised the[Read More…]
A recent peer reviewed study by the Environmental Working Group (USA) has made an important addition to the growing number of warnings by experts regarding the high possibility of risks from radiofrequency radiation emitted by wireless devices including cell-phones and tablets. This study, published in Environmental Health journal, has made an important plea for revising the highly outdated health[Read More…]
Today the cricket world celebrates the 40th anniversary of arguably the best ever spell by a fast bowler in the 4th innings of a test match. Late Bob Willis took spirit of resilience or combative spirit, to regions rarely traversed in sport. In the 4th test at Leeds versus Australia. Willis’s spell of 8-43 in the 2nd innings at Leeds[Read More…]
Today is the 42nd martyrdom day of Student leader Prithipal Singh Randhawa .No Student leader in the history of India ever galvanized forces or crystallised or set guidelines of the mass line practice in student movement, in the magnitude of Prithipal.Exactly 42 years ago he was murdered by goons of the Akali Dal party. Few mass leaders ever better grasped[Read More…]
Social Movements are long lasting and more effective way to bring changes in society : K Veeramani Mr K. Veeramani, is perhaps the senior most of the leaders of revolutionary Periyar E.V.Ramasamy’s Dravidian movement. He was groomed by Periyar since childhood. Born on December 2nd, 1933, he was inducted in the Dravidian movement under the leadership of EVR Periyar since[Read More…]
Three Worlds Theory, Mao, Deng, and DV Rao’s views Mao and Deng. Theirs was an association of 50 years, Deng being the General Secretary of CCP most of the time. Two-line struggle was part of CCP’s legacy. They never differed on TWT. This is part-2 of an article published on the occasion of death anniversary of com DV Rao. Part-1[Read More…]
Today we commemorate the 40th anniversary of the greatest test match ever in the history of Cricket, which had one of the greatest turnarounds in the history of sport. The 3rd test at Leeds from July 17-22 in 1981, between England and Australia was the equivalent of a Hollywood classic or epic novel. There could be rarely instances in the[Read More…]
Dear Authors and Readers of Countercurrents, You may all know Sheshu Babu an author for CC for long time. Most of our old authors may have received at least one thoughtful comment from him. In the early days, he used to read all CC articles and post a thoughtful comment for each article. Then one day, another CC author Emily[Read More…]
Canons of Character from Shambhu Chandra Vidyaratna’s Vidyasagar Jeevan-Charit O Bhramaniras Part I [Translator’s commentary: There were two central pillars at the front end of the nineteenth century Bengal Renaissance and the social reformation movement, a cultural re-awakening considered a direct consequence of the English colonial establishment then on the rise in Bengal and gradually elsewhere in India. On the[Read More…]
Humans started building cities four thousand years ago, in Mesopotamia, then in Egypt, China, India. 1. Complexities of life arose, Myth of Cain, Ziggurat, Tower of Bavel. Human empowerment led to diminution of gods, Other gods emerged, Marduk, Chinese Pangu, Vedic gods, Adonis of Greece. 2. Axial age was the beginning of organized religions-Confucian, Tao, Buddhism, Hinduism, Mid-Eastern Monotheism,[Read More…]
S. N. Nagarajan passed away in Chennai on 24 May morning. He was ninety-five years old, but intellectually active right to the end. Popularly known as SN (Sathyamangalam Nagarajan) his circle of friends was vast and varied. His role in popularising Marxist philosophy and political ideology among the people is widely recognised in Thamizhakam. He was a prolific writer in[Read More…]
Tragically former test cricketer Yashpal Sharma expired on Tuesday morning, suffering from a cardiac arrest. The cricket world mourns the death of this great servant to Indian cricket. He emboldened the spirit of the game at it’s utmost depth, with great reserves of courage and concentration. He may not have been the most talented, but was an epitome of determination,[Read More…]
by Paritosh Singh, Akash Singh & Ashish Kumar Singh Abstract Vehicle parking is a major problem in urban areas in both developed and developing countries. Following the rapid increase of car ownership, many cities are suffering from lacking of car parking areas with imbalance between parking supply and demand which can be considered the initial reason for metropolis parking problems.[Read More…]
It’s been raining incessantly for three days. It is a cool early morning in the beginning of July and I have just made a cup of coffee. Now an electrical power outage has occurred and so I am sitting in a rocking chair in the semi-darkness savoring my coffee and feeling thankful that I made it in time. I have[Read More…]
More than 70 people died from lightning strikes on a single day July 12 2021 in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. This is not an isolated case but reflects an overall rising trend in lightning incidents and mortality. On June 7 in West Bengal 27 lightning deaths were reported. Last year (2020) between June 25 and[Read More…]
Comrade DV Rao, key leader of Telangana People’s Armed Struggle(1946-51). He is remembered on his death anniversary today. *** Even as the China Communist Party (CCP or CPC) celebrated its centenary (1921-2021 July 1), there is a shrill campaign against it in the global media, and even by some Leftist parties and their media. Many attribute it to post-Mao developments[Read More…]
The never ending queues outside the clinics, jam packed hospitals, and the backlogs of the surgeries, this is the typical scene outside any hospital in India. In order for a nation to conquer any health emergency and to avoid such situations to crop up in future, the first and foremost heed should be paid to the healthcare personnel. India’s frail[Read More…]
Today we commemorate the 37th death anniversary of legendary Comrade Devulapalli Venkatestwara Rao or DV. Arguably DV was the greatest Indian Communist leader ever. No Comrade on theoretical plane contributed as much to stitch the thread or pave the path of mass line, integrating Mao Tse Tung thought with the peculiarities of the Indian conditions. In the manner of a[Read More…]
Dear Darapuriji, Thank you for forwarding to me the charming piece of Dr. Bhagwan Das about his initial encounters with Dr. Ambedkar. The account has such endearing aura about both the persons. As I read it, memories welled up and I recalled the first opportunity I had of seeing Dr. Ambedkar at close quarters and even putting a question or[Read More…]
Many accounts of the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 have concentrated more on the later glorious phase when victory of the Bangladesh liberation fighters and the Indian forces fighting in close cooperation with each other was achieved, or was close to being achieved. This glorious and well-deserved victory should not , however, lead us to neglecting the fact that victory[Read More…]
The British materialist philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) is one of the fathers of social contract theory and modern political philosophy. His magnus opus – Leviathan[i] – is a text which á la Plato’s Republic covers a wide breadth of subjects from epistemology, science, religion, and moral and political philosophy. However, his text is most widely remembered for its monarchism-endorsing political[Read More…]
July 6, 2021, was the 114th birth anniversary of Frida Kahlo – a revolutionary painter and socialist. Today, she has been fetishized, commodified and sanitized: her self-portraits and photographs stare out from T-shirts, calendars, fashion magazines and jewelry; her unique personality is used to sell everything – from Barbie dolls to cosmetics box sets. Kahlo’s present-day status as a global[Read More…]
It’s a workplace truism employers don’t want to hear, especially today when trying to make up lost production time from pandemic lockdowns by raising shifts to 10 to 16 hours. Yet employee fatigue has always been known to be counterproductive, expensive, and can either result in lifetime job-related injuries or death. The worst of such long-hour, fatigue-related global accidents to[Read More…]
“On the morning of September 11, 2001, Donald Rumsfeld ran to the fire at the Pentagon to assist the wounded and ensure the safety of survivors,” expressed a mournful George W. Bush in a statement. “For the next five years, he was in steady service as a wartime secretary of defense – a duty he carried out with strength, skill,[Read More…]
On June 28, the Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra said that only those who have received two doses of vaccines will be permitted entry into theatres, multiplexes, coaching centres, and colleges. A few days before, on June 24, the Gujarat High Court granted temporary relief to an IAF officer who received a show-cause notice from Indian Air Force over[Read More…]
Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark- Rabindranath Tagore Whenever the thought of Kabiguru crosses my mind, a shade of white illuminates my thoughts, a white which is as pure as the pearl lying in its shell waiting to be uncovered in an unknown sea. It is a well-known fact that white is[Read More…]
Ambedkar found a peculiar charm and magnetism in the appellation Bharat. He had named one of his weeklies Bahishkrit Bharat. The name of his printing press was Bharat Bhushan Printing Press. His fight for temple entry and his battle for codifying the Hindu laws speak volumes for his inner struggle. You might believe the conversion of Lord Halifax, but not[Read More…]
South Asians have a long and honorable history of migration. They took to the high seas for adventure or to escape political persecution for daring to challenge foreign rule. A substantial number left their homes to seek a better future, as the countries of their birth had suffered from plunder at the hands of colonists. Colonial rulers transported a great[Read More…]
Courage is not having the strength to go on-it is going on when you do not have strength. —Napoleon Bonaparte Drug addiction among youth is alarmingly rampant these days. This drug addiction is destroying not only their physical health but also the vitals of psychological health. The reasons why people get addicted to drugs are countless. But the most explicit[Read More…]
June 24 marks the birth anniversary of a revolutionary poet and saint whose rebellious rhymes will always remain relevant. Kabir was born to a Muslim family of weavers in Varanasi, India in 1398. He denounced orthodoxy of both Islam and Hinduism, and was highly critical of blind faith and the brutal caste system within Hindu society. He grew up as[Read More…]
Today we commemorate the 25th death anniversary of Comrade Nimmala Krishna Murthy who till his last breath was a crusader for the massline and liberation of the Adivasis..Inspite of baring all the adversities or twists and turns with the courage of a soldier and skill of an architect he carved out his course of struggle. At the time of his[Read More…]
Veteran Hindi author and editor Ramesh Upadhyaya passed away recently at the age of 79 in Delhi. His contributions to Hindi literature and journalism as well as education spread over more than five decades were invaluable. He received several awards including the prestigious Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Award. His perspective was that of a left-oriented thinker with deep commitments to social[Read More…]
By Ch SN Murthy and Dr S. Jatin Kumar We are grieved to learn and inform the sad news that Com. PS Hochimin ( 51) died June 17 morning in Thrissur, Kerala. He fell sick some weeks ago, his friend reported, subsequently tested Covid positive, developed complications, hospitalized, and died. His last rites were conducted as per Covid protocol. We[Read More…]
Last week, the Food and Drug Administration ignored the advice of its own expert advisory committee and approved the first new treatment for Alzheimer’s in 18 years. Called Aduhelm, it carries a substantial risk of painful brain swelling and bleeding, requires monthly infusions, and comes with an eye-popping list price of $56,000 per year. These caveats might be fine if[Read More…]
Ajmer Singh Aulakh was one of the most creative and impactful writers and playwrights in the history of the revolutionary movement on Punjab or India, whose mark will live forever. Sadly 4 years ago .on June 15th he left us, after suffering from a prolonged period with Cancer. His name will permanently illuminate in the annals of revolutionary artists, like[Read More…]
PBL: “Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, teach him how to catch a fish and he will never go hungry”. This simple quote emphasizes the key tenet of education – providing people with the means to succeed in their future endeavours. But does our education system fulfil the basic needs of the people? The[Read More…]
Karl Marx’s 1859 preface to A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy[i] represents one of the clearest reflections of the development of his and Engels’ thought. In what amounts to a short four and a half pages, Marx concisely exhibits the resulting conclusions of more than two decades worth of studies – from his first encounter with the economic[Read More…]
Today is the 12th death anniversary of legendary Comrade Harbhajan Singh Sohi.Comrade Harbhajan Sohi or HBS was one of the greatest comrades to have ever dipped his feet in the history of the Indian Communist Movement. No comrade was a greater protagonist of the mass line in the last 4 decades after the death of T.Nagi Reddy.He had mastery over[Read More…]
“To know that we know what we know, and to know that we do not know what we do not know, that is true knowledge” (Nicolaus Copernicus). Socratic knowledge in its true essence is neither any teaching in the conventional sense of world nor about filling the empty minds of largely passive students with facts and figures acquired through mugging[Read More…]
Today on June 14th we celebrate the 93rd birthday of the legendary Che Guevera.He carves a permanent niche amongst the great revolutionaries and crusaders for the liberation of man. Che may be no longer with us but his spirit is not dead and buried and still sparkles in a most subtle manner. In many areas of the world today Che’s[Read More…]
The global scene is deeply disturbing. The wealth of billionaires is increasing even as the starvation-scarred world cries for help; astronomical surges in inequality are pushing an ever greater number of people into a state of pure deprivation; the repressive powers of capitalist states all over the world are being steadily strengthened to silence the growing disquiet in streets and[Read More…]
Adjectives such as intolerant, rigid, and incompatible are often associated with Islam. It has been part of usual propaganda carried without context, with vested political motives, and half-baked assertions. It is more viewed in the west and an increasing number of other places as a religion more inclined towards violence and critical of modern civilization. Many authors have argued in[Read More…]
Earlier this year we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the entry of Greg Chappell into the arena of International cricket which was against England at Perth in February in 1971. Ironically he scored a century in his debut after coming in with his side in a precarious position of 107 for the loss of five wickets. From the very word[Read More…]
Very sadly our beloved comrade Vira Sathidar left us recently at the age of 61 on April 13th due to covid illness.Ironically he expired on the very date of the historic Jallianawalla Bagh massacre. I can’t express how bereaved it made so many around feel or my personal affection for him. One of the liveliest and most positive comrades within[Read More…]
The present state of Muslims in India and elsewhere in the world is so beautifully captured in the following poignant words of one of the most celebrated contemporary Muslim intellectuals, Ziauddin Sardar in one of his books: “Muslims are sundered, divided and factional within, as much as they cherish a sense of superiority over other societies that they lack within[Read More…]
Without doubt Dilip Vengsarkar is one of the finest batsmen ever to have graced a cricket field. This week we commemorate the feat of Dilip Vengsarkar becoming the 1st overseas batsman ever to score three consecutive centuries in test matches at Lords. It is a landmark that would inscribe a permanent place in the museum of cricket. We also coincidentally[Read More…]
Comrade Satnam or Gurmeet Singh was one of the most original thinkers in the ranks of the democratic revolutionary movement. Rarely in recent times could we meet a human being with such a degree of intelligence or sensitivity. I met him first in December in 2015 in Patiala, staying a night at his place. He was inactive politically being compelled[Read More…]
The pandemic- tobacco is killing around 40 lakh people every year in India alone, while corona killed 3.29 lakh only so far from first and second waves. There was an interesting question before Supreme Court, whether a person has a right to die. That led to another question whether ‘life’ includes ‘death’. What is life? The line between two dots[Read More…]
Today we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Imran stepping his first foot into the arena of test cricket, at Edgbaston cricket ground in Birmingham.It was reminiscent of Amitabh Bacchan flashing on the Hindi film screen for the first time, where he hardly even looked a shadow of his later self. It would have been very hard for anyone to gauge[Read More…]
In June 1971, exactly 50 years ago at Edgbaston cricket ground at Birmingham in England, the bespectacled Zaheer Abbas gave the first flash of his illustrious cricketing career .His monumental 274 was amongst cricket’s classics taking aestheticism to regions of the sublime. For nine hours, ten minutes spectators were virtually put into a trance witnessing the glorious strokes all around[Read More…]
“Cultivation of the Mind should be the ultimate aim of human existence” – said Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. Well, what could be more stimulating and productive than art? The art of creating something, where the brain intercepts an idea and grows it into a manifold entity. Whether it’s writing an article, a poem, a story or making a painting, a[Read More…]
Posing the Question This year marks the 57th anniversary of Herbert Marcuse’s One-Dimensional Man (1964). This text, although plagued with a pessimistic spirit, was a great source of inspiration for the development of the New Left and the May 68 uprisings. The question we must ask ourselves is whether a text that predates the last 50 years of neoliberalism has[Read More…]
Global Classroom is a novel and innovative way to gain international experience, virtually, from wherever you are! When talking about Global Classroom we mean a unique class consisting of students from two or more different countries. Even while students in a virtual classroom are divided by physical space, they are connected by being involved in the identical practical activities, learning[Read More…]
In January earlier this year we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the debut of the legendary Dennis Lillee in 1971, paying against England at home.. In my time no cricketer took determination or never say die spirit to such a crescendo as fast bowler Dennis Lillee.Nor was anyone as much an epitome of perfection in the art of fast bowling[Read More…]
Legendary freedom fighter and Civil Rights activist Harohalli Srinivasaiah Doreswamy popularly known as HS Doreswamy breathed his last yesterday. The 103 year-old Gandhian, who kept the ‘conscience of Karnataka till his very last breath, and was the tallest public intellectual, who appeased none and spared none‘ would be remembered for his enthusiasm for public causes till he remained alive Born[Read More…]
“Capitalism is often interpreted as a religion. However, if religion is understood in terms of Religare, as something that binds, then capitalism is anything but a religion because it lacks any force to assemble, to create community…And what is essential to religion is contemplative rest, but this is the antithesis of Capital. Capital never rests. It is in its nature[Read More…]
Sunderlal Bahuguna , the famous environmentalist of India who passed away on May 21 recently at the age of 94, is being widely remembered for his great contributions to protecting forests and rivers as well contributions to human welfare at several levels. However it is well to also remember at this juncture that for close to seven decades Vimla, his[Read More…]
To the credit of the Government of India and the State Government of Uttarakhand, they have been prompt and generous in their homage to the great environmentalist Sunderlal Bahuguna who passed away recently. However, will they also honor his vision for the Himalayan region for which he devoted his life? His vision was based on his interactions with thousands of[Read More…]
Our old generation has already discovered the power of storytelling in a practical sense – they have observed how compelling a well-constructed narrative can be. However, recent scientific research shows how stories change our attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors. An interesting and emotionally moving film or novel will project ourselves into stories or we might identify with a specific character. We[Read More…]
With singer-songwriter Bob Dylan turning 80 on May 24, it seemed like an appropriate time to reflect on the artist’s enduring relevance. Writing furiously at his typewriter, cigarette in his mouth and the legendary Joan Baez by his side or in the background, a prolific young Dylan tapped into the spirit of a burgeoning counter-culture with his folk-inspired work. Performed[Read More…]
UN Road Safety Week Ends On Sunday May 23 The Road Safety Week ( May 17-23 ) ends on Sunday and this is a good time to reflect on the enormous prospects that exist for reducing road-accident related distress worldwide. Nearly 1.35 million people ( 13.5 lakh) die in a typical year worldwide in road traffic accidents while around[Read More…]
On my first day as a professor of critical writing in a ‘premier’ university, I decided to conduct an experiment in the classroom. I walked in and told the students that ‘today’s class will focus on critical thinking because one logically and chronologically has to think critically first and only then proceed to write critically.’ Saying that, I wrote ‘cultural[Read More…]
“It’s only after you have stepped outside your comfort zone that you begin to change, grow and transform” (Roy T. Bennett). Every single individual on the face of earth who claims any lineage or belonging to the Homo sapiens lives and sustains in one or the other society. For the consistent growth and development of society, almost every individual strives[Read More…]
The tough and totally strange situation that we are being pushed into because of the pandemic makes one rethink and reassess a lot of things and feelings we have been taking for granted. The most important being freedom of movement, the ease at which we gather and share life’s simple moments, the intensity with which we argue and disagree face[Read More…]
One of the greatest, and relatively easier, potential of reducing human distress which has not been tapped properly adequately relates to the potential of reducing human distress related to all accidents. Of course here our reference is not just to road accidents ( or all transport related accidents) but also to all other workplace ( occupational and domestic accidents[Read More…]
On May 21 India , and humanity, lost three distinguished persons who had made great contributions in their own chosen fields. Dinesh Mohan contributed greatly to biomedical engineering and transport planning.Rajkumar Keswani was a famous journalist. And we hardly need to introduce Bahuguna as one of the most distinguished environmentalists of our times. Very different areas of work, you may[Read More…]
A white head-scarf, a white flowing beard, a faint smile and an impish twinkle in the eyes – Sunderlal Bahuguna’s was one of the more recognizable public faces in the country and certainly the most amidst the ecologists and environmentalist across the world. He breathed his last today (21 May 2021) at 1205 hrs at the All India Institute of[Read More…]
Close to the Global Accessibility Awareness Day, the officials of the Surrey-Delta Sikh temple came together to help out a youth whose lower limbs had stopped working. After becoming disabled below the waist following an accident, international student Amritpal Singh was dependent on fellow students. The members of Guru Nanak Singh Gurdwara, which continues to provide free food to the[Read More…]
I was very sad to hear of the death this morning of Dinesh Mohan, noted expert on road safety, in St Stephen’s hospital in Delhi. It is a big loss to the international campaign for road safety, he was a consultant to many countries and currently the U.N. is observing a road safety week. He did pioneering research on road[Read More…]
Creative visualization uses imagination, mental images, and the power of thoughts to make objectives come true. Used properly, it can improve and attain richness. It is a power that can alter one’s circumstances, and attract money, possessions, people and love into your life. Creative visualization uses the powers of the human mind, and it is the power behind every triumph.[Read More…]
Rejoinder and reflections by comrades on ‘Fractured Freedom and Interviews of Comrade Kobad Ghandy In recent days I received a rebuttal from Comrades who read my critique of Kobad Ghandy book ‘Fractured Freedom”.I may not completely endorse their viewpoint but I respect their sound clarity from a Marxist Leninist perspective. I also admired Kobad Ghandy’s brilliant refutation of the criticism[Read More…]
The death of the distinguished poet, writer, and teacher, Sankha Ghosh removes a huge, near-silent presence from the literary, intellectual, and moral landscape of Bengal. Sankha babu leaves behind a legacy of truth-telling to the very faces of wayward powers-that-be, which at least some of his students and admirers are likely to look up to with pride and joy for[Read More…]
Javed Miandad exuded none of the gentlemanly spirit so much part of the game on the cricket field or gave the game it’s due respect in terms of grace or sportsmanship .He stood amongst cricket’s most controversial and outspoken characters. However few batsmen or cricketers took combative spirit or defiance to such a magnitude, to ressurect a team from the[Read More…]
Due to the Covid lockdown in 2020, though the number of road traffic accidents declined yet deaths did not decline in the same proportion because people drive at higher speeds which continued to result in fatal accidents. Every year, more than 1.3 million people die in road traffic crashes – that’s one person every 24 seconds. Excessive speed is[Read More…]
Debjeet Sarangi, a leading development and environment activist based in Odisha, breathed his last on May 15 at a Bhubaneswar hospital. He was only 53 at the time of his untimely death. In a relatively short time, Debjeet had made very important contributions relating to justice, environment protection and evolving a new development paradigm. His contribution to looking at tribal[Read More…]
The blaming of young people as ‘lazy, deviants, drug abusers, materialists, selfish, directionless, apolitical and other stereotypes continue to dominate public narratives. The objectives of these borderless narratives are designed to weaken young people’s ability to challenge and transform the society in which they live. The blame culture and negative portrayals are control mechanisms of old and established social, political,[Read More…]
Just a few days ago legendary Naxalite leader and C.P.I.(M.L) New Democracy Punjab state secretary Comrade Darshan Singh Khatkar turned 75.I don’t have an adjective to do justice to both his personal qualities and contribution towards the Communist Movement. Without a doubt one of the greatest ever comrades to have joined the contingent of the Communist revolutionary camp. Few comrades[Read More…]
Nutan simply took grace to regions of divinity like no other actress who virtually traversed sublime realms when acting. She exuded the fragrance of a lotus blossoming or radiance of a full moon looking like a manifestation of the energy of the divine or a spiritual force transcending through her. No female star transcended spirituality in her[Read More…]
Today I write to celebrate the full life of a Roman Catholic Dalit priest, Rev. Dr. P. Antonyraj SJ who passed away on 10th May. I was nineteen years old studying in St. Joseph’s College, Tiruchirappalli and staying in the hostel in Room No. 101, when I had several common mentors who moulded me in my college days like Fr. P.[Read More…]
Vidarbha has been a fertile soil for many social reformers and intellectuals. It has played an active role in the nation’s destiny and its social, cultural and political rivulets have flown into and enriched the great sea of national civilization. One such luminary who emerged from Yavatmal was Kazi Syed Karimuddin. He rose to be a great criminal lawyer of[Read More…]
We live in the most tumultuous times when exit from the world and life we have taken for granted is determined by a small being. As a woman living in Kerala ridden with patriarchal norms sugar coated as liberal progressive novel thought, it is but inevitable that one feels concerned about what one leaves behind, what will be the reference[Read More…]
Balraj Sahni took art of acting simply to another dimension in his time, reminiscent of a Michelangelo. It is hard to find an adjective to do justice to his sheer sensitivity which reached spiritual depths or realism in his characters. He did not make the impact of Dev Anand,Raj Kapoor or Dilip Kumar but in championing or portraying the common[Read More…]
Not long ago, streets and roads of primary importance in significant parts of Delhi were subjected to a rampant, incessant renaming spree. The Akbar Road, for instance, an iconic road in Central Delhi was renamed Maharana Pratap road overnight. The given reason- the inglorious past of the Mughal and British figures in comparison with the shining history of the Hindu[Read More…]
Written by Poornima Bisineer and Sandeep Pandey As the second more virulent wave of coronavirus rages on, the urban areas seem to be more adversely affected compared to the rural areas. Although, there are cases and deaths being now reported from rural areas too but the numbers in cities is disproportionately higher. And within the cities the better off localities[Read More…]
Dear Com. Narwal, I know I never had the good fortune to meet you or your daughter Natasha Narwal in person. Like thousands of my fellow citizens of this country, I came across your name for the first time in 2020, when your daughter and her friends were illegally incarcerated for their brave resistance against the state in the form[Read More…]
There has been a remarkable upsurge in the reach of journalism, social media, and public engagement, through digital sources in the recent 20 years. Every minute of every day, our planet now pulses with trillions of digital social signals, bombarding us with streams of status updates, news stories, tweets, pokes, posts, referrals, advertisements, notifications, shares, check-ins, and ratings from peers[Read More…]
Alam ha kari yaad Azad Azad (Abdul Ahad) kuni saate wuchte yaad pawayi madano. The world will frantically search for Azad. The time will come when you will recollect, my love! What prompted the tall turbaned school teacher to brag about his personality ? When one meanderers through the life history, achievements and the literary work he accomplished ,one[Read More…]
In the recent past we have seen enough of riots, trolling and devaluation of others in the name of collectivity. Nothing is like groups emancipation and collectivity if it is used for degradation and humiliation of others. Emotion which pleases us when others are suffering is dehumanizing. In the time of pandemic, there is a doubling of humanity crisis, both[Read More…]
In my lifetime I saw no Indian middle order batsman who was as much an embodiment of determination, will power or who displayed more grit in the depths of despair and above all selflessness. His name was Mohinder Bharadwaj Amarnath or ‘Jimmy’ Amarnath..No batsman illustrated more about cricket being in the mind. It was not about elegance or statistical records[Read More…]
While so many differences have emerged in the context of the recent response to COVID-19 in various countries, one point on which it should be possible to establish wider agreement is that this response would have been much better if a robust, strong, well-rooted, trustworthy and trust-creating, community-based , well-resourced health system was in place in all rural as[Read More…]
“And the first birthright of capital is equal exploitation of labor-power by all capitalists.” Marx thus describes a reality dominated by capital. Today, in this pandemic point, when death is sweeping away thousands of lives in countries, in India and Brazil, in cities, in New Delhi, Mumbai and Reo de Janeiro, when ordinary citizens are gasping for oxygen, when their[Read More…]
The coronavirus pandemic has already caused the colossal loss of lives and livelihoods around the world. It continues to create havoc in different countries like Brazil and India. It has destroyed livelihoods, communities and families. This global health crisis has taken a terrible toll on individual lives by expanding unbelievable levels of anxiety, alienation, deaths, destitutions, loneliness and loss. The[Read More…]
Nargis ranks amongst the most complete or consummate Indian actresses of all time. Sadly she left for her heavenly abode, 40 years ago. She was as natural as moonlight glimmering, in anger, sadness or laughter. Nargis posessed the intensity of coal fire and the sweetness of arose blooming. Nargis could in one moment look as calm as the water flowing[Read More…]
>> “Any epidemic anywhere must now be seen as a threat to virtually all countries especially those that serve as major hubs of international travel.” >> “Doctors worldwide are losing some of the most useful and affordable antibiotics.” >> “At least 333 million new cases of sexually transmitted diseases, other than HIV infection, occurred in one year.” These[Read More…]
One of the most persistent causes of human distress in world has been that too many human relationships are built around the tendencies of dominance and exploitation. This is true not just of the apparently more hostile relationships but even of some apparently friendly relationships where the urge for dominance often remains at least on one side and contributes[Read More…]
The democratic revolutionary movement lost a comrade who till her last breadth ignited its spark. On April 22nd, ironically on Lenin’s birthday Comrade Meenakshi perished unable to counter the covid infection. Whatever differences she was part of the contingent of Marxsim-Leninism-Mao thought .Comrade Meenakshi is the fourth major martyr of the organization after the departure of Arvind Shalini and Nitin.[Read More…]
Smita Patil was a legend who portrayed role of crusader for liberation of women at an unprecedented scale in Hindi films. No actress was better in championing role of an oppressed woman. No Indian actress has immersed so much into the thick and skin of an opressed woman or done as much justice to the role of woman’s rebellion against[Read More…]
Comrade Madhu may be gone but his spirit is not dead and buried and should be resurrected like a lotus blooming to extinguish the poison of Neo-fascism. A crusader for liberation till his last breath. It is matter of great regret that member of the Central Commitee of the C.P.I.(M.L),Comrade Madhu ,has left us. I or members of streams of[Read More…]
On May 1st we celebrate the 70th birthday of one of the greatest batsman of all time. It is also thirty years since this cricketing colossus retired from the game with a fitting finale. On his day Gordon Greenidge took batting domination to magnitude rarely surpassed and looked the ultimate epitome of perfection. Possibly no batsman in his day hit[Read More…]
The contagious Covid-19 has stimulated an irremediable health crisis and has increased the burden of mental illness among students. The deadly virus has wreaked unprecedented havoc on millions of lives, pushing many of them to an untimely demise. As the country fights against the virus, the suicide has emerged as the second-leading cause of non-coronavirus deaths in India as revealed[Read More…]
Left forces have generally been a source of hope and justice , but at certain junctures of history and in certain places these have also been a source of despair and injustice. Human beings are at a critical stage of their history, and we need cooperation and help of all forces who can contribute to creating a better and safer[Read More…]
The need for introducing more issues of social relevance in school and college education has been often emphasized, as also the need for improving the ethical content of education. At the same time, the need for making education more interesting and participative for students at all levels is increasingly realized. All of these on objectives can be advanced by making[Read More…]
Barack Obama wore only blue and grey suits during his tenure in the White House, Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs sport the same clothes day after day. When rational individuals aim at maximizing their utility, choices become imperative to maximize satisfaction and in turn to heighten ones happiness. Then, why these highly successful people restricted their choices in clothing? Not[Read More…]
Lenin, the proletarian revolutionary, was born on this day – April 22, 1870. Lenin, Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov, led the Great October Revolution in 1917 in Russia that has changed the world forever. The epoch-making revolution by the exploited stood as unparallel among all revolutions as the revolution overthrew all the exploiting classes while all the past revolutions replaced one exploiting[Read More…]
The pandemic in which the world is embroiled today, has gripped common people with confusion due to poor information causing fear and panic. In India, this week started with 113 deaths being recorded in just one district- Nagpur, making it the district with the highest mortality. Nagpur witnessed an increase of 28 deaths in 24 hours. The district recorded 6,364[Read More…]
During this time in which many of us are still mourning the recent passing of former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark it seems appropriate to reflect on Ramsey’s many warnings to humanity like, ‘The government of Americans will lie, deceive, kill, do whatever it must to dominate – investors in war who control it insanely insensitive to the beauty of[Read More…]
Written by Bhumkia Rajdev, Abdul Basith and Suhail K New Education Policy 2020 has replaced thirty-four-year-old National Policy on Education (1986). The 66-page document talks about vision of government for ECCE (Early childhood care education), School Education, Higher Education and Professional education. It aims for universalisation of education from pre-school to secondary level with 100% GER (Gross Enrolment Ratio) in[Read More…]
“Revolutionary Dreaming Tramp” (On the occasion of Charlie’s Birthday- 16th April 1889) “I consider myself a citizen of the world, an internationalist… I just happen to have been born in London, England. It could have been Burma or China or Timbuktu, I’d still be the way I am. I’d keep my first citizenship because, being an accident of birth,[Read More…]
Waking up from sleep has usually been a refreshing exercise. Like, returning home after a hard day of work. But, not anymore. While we do not celebrate the little pleasures that life brings, it is only when bliss gives us a miss, that we begin to take note of how the quotidian is more than just routine. When the second[Read More…]
“The higher education in India is poised for colossal changes with deleterious outcomes under the ‘surveillance capitalism,’” according to G. Arunima, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University and the Director of Kerala Council for Historical Research (KCHR). She was delivering the Third “Scholars of Eminence Web-Lecture” (SEW-L) organised by the Inter University Centre for Social Science Research and Extension (IUCSSRE), Mahatma Gandhi[Read More…]
No batsman who played for India took elegance or grace to such divine proportions as Mohammad Azharuddin.He was the perfect manifestation of poetry in motion in Cricket.Azhar was not as technically sound as Rahul Dravid or Sachin Tendulkar ,as calculating as Virat Kohli or as destructive as Virendra Sehwag but for sheer artistry he surpassed them all. Few artists took[Read More…]
Denis Halliday is an exceptional figure in the world of diplomacy. In 1998, after a 34-year career with the United Nations—including as an Assistant Secretary-General and the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Iraq—he resigned when the UN Security Council refused to lift sanctions against Iraq. Halliday saw at first hand the devastating impact of this policy that had led to the[Read More…]
On the 9th of April 2021, Ramsey Clark passed away in the States. He was ninety four. The former US Attorney-General had spent decades in the struggle for human rights both when he was in government and after he ceased to be Attorney-General. He had been in the forefront of so many human rights causes that it will not be[Read More…]
Scientific pursuit, struggles in the arena of production, and class-war making language dynamic and rich is related to the issues of the world around – nature and processes in nature, dialectics, basis and super structures and relation between these, power and powerlessness, class and class struggle. Whatever individual contribution in the universe of language is made, it’s ultimately the product[Read More…]
Ramadhan comes as the 9th month of the Islamic Calendar. It is known for the mercy of Almighty on humanity which is in the form of divine guidance, spiritual nourishment, compassion, and moral training. The Islamic calendar is purely lunar. The month begins when the new crescent moon is first visible in the night sky and ends with Eid al[Read More…]
The passing away of Mr I A Rehman who was also fondly referred as Rehman Saheb, founder of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, a truly people’s Commission on Human Rights is a big loss for the human rights movement in South Asia in general and Pakistan in particular. His was a voice that stood with its head high and with[Read More…]
I wish to write a little on a couple of terms, one of which, Ground or Grounding Dimension, I learned from an essay by Larry Dossey, and the other, Floating World, came to me as a designation for America but which I now understand was formerly applied to the urban culture of Edo Japan. One of these terms implies connectedness,[Read More…]
Today on April 12th we celebrate the 13th death anniversary of Comrade Anuradha Gandhy. Without doubt one of the greatest comrades in the annals of revolutionary history ever who till her last breath exuded spirit of revolution and was a crusader for liberation. None could illustrate better that to be a revolutionary one had to undergo inner or spiritual transformation.[Read More…]
There has been a proliferation of literature on women, including women’s history across the world. Yet, women remain mostly invisible or misrepresented in mainstream history. They are either not present at all, or they are portrayed as innately ‘inferior’ and ‘subordinate,’ as perpetual victims of male oppression. This has been a pattern across nations and continents for long. Consequently, the[Read More…]
Over five centuries after he confronted the most powerful pillars of establishment with truth and courage, Sant Kabir reigns in the hearts of millions as an compromising social reformer and people’s poet with perhaps the widest reach in India. He is still arguably the most commonly quoted poet in the vast Hindi belt, with a following that extends much beyond[Read More…]
Red salutes to immortal Contribution of Sunder Navalkar to emancipation of the working class who passed away on April 9th Veteran comrade Sunder Navalkar is no more, perishing at 10.30 in the morning on April 9th.Without doubt she was one of the greatest persons ever to have treaded the path of Communist Revolution blazing the spirit of Liberation or Mao[Read More…]
Written by Prem Kumar Vijayan & Karen Gabriel It is widely acknowledged that Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, and more specifically, his political method of non-violent struggle, was one of the major reasons that the British were forced to leave India. However, it is also evident that these Gandhian methods have failed on many, many occasions, and are likely to continue to[Read More…]
Gooch was arguably the best ever opening batsman against express pace bowling I have rarely seen a batsman as engrossed out in the middle as Former English opening batsman Graham Gooch in full flow, who could pierce the impenetrable gaps. He may have lacked the touch of a David Gower or solidity of Boycott but for sheer conviction no English[Read More…]
Should not a medicine (Remdesivir) that has shown lifesaving effect in certain cases of Covid-19 be made available to all those who need it without delay? Even if Big Pharma has a patent, there are provisions in the global trade treaties that allow governments to issue compulsory licenses to such a lifesaving drug, and keep people over profit. This is[Read More…]
I am trying to wrap my brain around the abyss between pacifism and violence as to the proper means to bring about socio-political change. And as to how to overcome that divide. Though not violent as a person, my basic impulse, my instinct in this regard, is belligerent: ultimately, I believe, it will be necessary to unleash a lethal war[Read More…]
The last year has been extremely difficult for school education. On the one hand there have been very prolonged school closures due to COVID related factors and on the other hand the new situation has been used to push commercialization trends which already existed but appear to have gained more strength in these exceptional times. There is a feeling of[Read More…]
Marking The World Health Day, April 7, this is an extract from a book by PROF. B. M. HEGDE , HEALTHY INDIA 2020. Health is not the mere absence of physical illness. Health is the overall wellbeing of an individual that takes into account his/her physical, mental, spiritual, societal aspects of life into consideration. With this broad definition of[Read More…]
“I don’t believe in death without resurrection. If they kill me, I will rise again in the Salvadorian people…” – Archbishop Oscar Romero, martyred, 24 March 1980 Whether we are aware of it or not, we live by stories. We live by others’ stories while we tell our lives by how we live. Our actions tell our stories. Then when we[Read More…]
Mhaswad village is a mere blip on India’s vast geographic radar but it shines brightly on the country’s development landscape. Women here are seeding a digital revolution that is enabling financial security and well-being for low-income women in remote villages Located in the rain shadow region of Satara district, Maharashtra’s sugar bowl, Mhaswad faces perennial drought and agrarian distress. However,[Read More…]
Organized religion is like organized crime. It preys on people’s weaknesses, generates huge profits for its operators and is almost impossible to eradicate-Mike Hermann The above quote is defeatist. Violence in the current day and age is regarded by most mainstream Muslims as a reaction to inequity, injustice, and disempowerment, real or perceived. Stronger nations attack weaker ones when the[Read More…]
The two figures strolled in the most relaxed manner, until they came upon what many up there call ‘ The Edge of Heaven’. They stood on the precipice and together peered down, below the ethers, through the stratosphere and then the clouds, until they could view the Earth. Jesus- Well my friend, isn’t that majestic, your domain? Lucifer- Yes indeed,[Read More…]
Kalita Majhi, who works as a maid in four houses and earns Rs 2,500 a month, was in the news as BJP gave her the party ticket from Ausgram Assembly constituency located in Purba Burdwan district, Bengal.The district is known to be deprived of safe drinking water like so many others. Dental fluorosis (‘mottled enamel’) is a condition where[Read More…]
No sport arguably took grace and artistry to depths of regions the game of cricket did. Bowling and batting or even fielding at its best was reminiscent of poetry or a musical composition. Fast bowling was not all about agression and speed but about poetic beauty. Batting was not all bout power and technical skill but about touch art and[Read More…]
Nearly 73 years after he left us, victim of an assassin’s bullets, many people grappling with the most serious problems and issues in our troubled world are increasingly realizing the great value of several essential messages Mahatma Gandhi left behind after a very eventful and even more thoughtful life. One of these relates to understanding and appreciating the great importance[Read More…]
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on TB diagnosis and mortality in 2020 has been frightening, to say the least. Recently released WHO data shows that 1.4 million fewer people got TB care in 2020 as compared to 2019- a 21% decrease. Also over 0.5 million people died from TB in 2020 due to lack of diagnosis. Latest data by[Read More…]
If you love to read books, then in your journey as a reader you desire, at some point or other, to be part of the bookshop experience, to either own a bookshop or work in one. As a book lover, one tends to romanticize the bookselling experience. Reading the bookselling experiences of George Orwell and Shaun Bythell made me realize[Read More…]
Writing in his book “Late Victorian Holocausts: El Niño Famines and the Making of the Third World”, Mike Davis describes the Anti-Charitable Contributions Act of 1877, introduced in India when it was being ravaged by a famine, by then Viceroy Lord Lytton which “prohibited at the pain of imprisonment private relief donations that potentially interfered with the market-fixing of grain[Read More…]
Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi (1890—1931) had a unique position in the freedom movement of India. He was also a very great editor whose newspaper Pratap was a flag-bearer of freedom fighters as well as worker and peasant struggles. A prominent leader of the Congress Party and its head in United Provinces (roughly the Uttar Pradesh of today) , he also had[Read More…]
Even a cursory glance at the realities which grip India today, will make one realise how grim the situation is. On every global parameter, from the happiness index to the freedom one; from democracy to economic indicators, the country has plummeted miserably and as never before. Untruth and injustice, divisiveness and discrimination, exploitation and exclusion have become the ‘new normal’![Read More…]
I am a devout Hindu but not a believer of RSS Hindutva form of Hinduism which brings about hatred of other religions. My Hindu religion has not taught me to look down on other religions and neither has it instilled in me to go about converting others to my religion because my religion is superior. Hinduism has shown me a[Read More…]
Twenty third March is the birth anniversary of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia. In the events organized to mark this occasion demands are often made to the government for posthumous conferment of India’s highest civilian honour i.e. Bharat Ratna on Dr. Lohia. I anticipate that this year would be no different. In a brief commentary I authored in May 2018 a[Read More…]
For those who have read my previous work you know how I feel about landlords, especially absentee ones… and most especially corporate ones! In the mid 1990s my new wife and I ( each with one kid ) moved from Long Island, N.Y. to Indianapolis IN. Quite candidly, we were tired of renting apartments and could not afford the high[Read More…]
Debraj Mookerjee explores how syncretism permeates between the West and the East — how the two lores do meet Cultural influences travel at the speed of human imagination. In the modern world it is easy to plot the journey of cultural influences across the planet, thanks to the seamlessness created by communication technologies. The Internet links us all. But we also[Read More…]
‘Reforming capitalism’ is essentially considered an oxymoron by the academic world that is flummoxed by the ability of capitalism to re-mould, reorient and revamp itself for sustenance without losing the cardinal jus of exploitation. Post Perestroika and Glasnost[1], which eventually led to the collapse of the Soviet Union, Capitalism in the American unipolar world has triumphed in establishing a symbiotic[Read More…]
Two young women Sabita Mahato and Shruti Rawat are on an exciting Trans-Himalayan adventure to make the world aware of the everyday violence faced by women and girls as well as violent exploitation of Mother Earth resulting from capitalist patriarchy. They are being supported by One Billion Rising, South Asia and Young Sangat on their venture through the Campaign #RidetoRise.[Read More…]
The French thinker Louis Althusser in his famous essay on ideological state apparatuses, includes trade unions (and presumably professional associations too) in his illustrative list of such ideological state apparatuses. Both Trade Unions (TUs) and Professional Associations (PAs) are usually considered politically active bodies that are alert and resistant to any misuse or abuse of state or corporate power. Althusser’s[Read More…]
25 years ago on March 17th Sri Lanka captured the coveted cricket world cup title for the first time .It exuded aura of invincibility as few teams ever did like a great emperor annexing territory after territory. A red letter day was written in cricket with an underdog triumphing for the 2nd time. We must salute them for binding or[Read More…]
March 25 is the 90th death anniversary of a great freedom fighter, editor, worker and peasant leader, also deeply committed social reformer who sacrificed his life at the age of 40 while trying to stop communal violence and rescue persons from both communities trapped in it. The reference here is of course to Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi, the famous editor of[Read More…]
Written by Bharat Dogra and Jagmohan Singh In the days to come we will be remembering the ideals and aims of Bhagat Singh and his close colleagues and fellow-maryrs a lot. Many people and leaders will be gathering to pay their homage to him and fellow-martyrs Rajguru, Sukhdev, Chandra Shekhar Azad , Jatindranath Das, Bhagwati Charan Vohra and others whose[Read More…]
Vivek Gour Broome looks the personification of that nursery rhyme, “Old McDonald had a farm…” His farm west of Pune, beyond Hinjewadi in the village of Marunji, is an island of biodiversity – the crows were flying in to the shade of the trees the morning this writer visited. The farm has several different varieties of bamboo, including the thorny[Read More…]
In general and on average, people in the USA are supposedly the biggest drug users in the world. They are taught from practically birth that if something is wrong, there is no need to have any discomfort physically or psychologically. Just take some medicine or a bunch of medicines and your life will be alright again. Besides, you deserve happiness[Read More…]
What is ‘dissent’? The term ‘dissent’ was first used in sixteenth century England, to refer to the opinions of those Christian sects that would not conform to the Church of England (not just Catholics but many Protestant groups too, e.g., the Dissenters, the Puritans). Needless to say, they were quickly criminalised and hunted, leading to the exodus of Puritans to[Read More…]
We used to say, “Seeing is believing.” That is no longer true about videos. Use of AI to create Deep Fakes is so powerful that most people can’t tell the difference. As time passes, the technology will develop to the extent that we will simply not be able to tell the difference between real footage and doctored or simply created[Read More…]
What are the most stigmatized illnesses around the world? Umm…TB, HIV, Mental health issues. But have you come across people who are stigmatized because they have cancer? Do you think it exists? Well, it does. Many of us are now aware that the nation is going through an epidemiological transition, which means that there is a change in the pattern[Read More…]
Marking 150th anniversary of Rosa Luxemburg’s birth, this article about a great woman revolutionary thinker, writer, journalist and activist of the 20th century is being republished. Rosa was born on March 5, 1871 in Poland but grew to be the leader of the German Social Democratic Party, at that time one of the largest Marxist parties of the world. Rosa[Read More…]
Aristotle famously said that man was a social animal: ζῷον πολιτικόν. He also strongly implied that what distinguished man from all other animals was his rationality. Today this description seems to make more sense than ever. Human beings, contrary to the contract theorists such as Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau, were never lone beings in search of society. They always[Read More…]
“Since August 20, the young Red Guards of Peking, detachments of students,have taken to the streets. With the revolutionary rebel spirit of the proletariat, they have launched a furious offensive to sweep away reactionary, decadent bourgeois and feudal influences, and all old ideas, culture, customs and habits. This mounting revolutionary storm is sweeping the cities of the entire nation.Red Guards[Read More…]
The influence of Hindi film song in the life of people of India, often cutting across barriers of language and region, should never be underestimated. People keep humming Hindi film tunes all the time and remember and observe their moments of joy and sorrow, romance and rejection in terms of soulful tunes and lyrics from films. Many famous composers and[Read More…]
“Whatever I am, wherever I am, this is me, this is my life and if there’s a funny old person in years to come, who’s a ghost walking up and down here, it’ll be me.” These are the words of an incredible woman with an indomitable spirit, who has been an inspiration to many worldwide – Hannah Hauxwell, an English[Read More…]
A few nights ago, I had watched the NTV video on Probash Jibon featuring a self-made Bangladeshi born multi-billionaire Kali Pradip Chaudhuri (KPC) in Los Angeles (LA), California. His lifestyle consists of such opulence and excesses that it will be categorically approved by Mukesh Ambani, the Reliance Industries Chairman and Jay Gatsby, Scott Fitzgerald’s flamboyant central character in The Great[Read More…]
Today on March 6th we commemorate a landmark day in the history of India being the 50th anniversary of legendary Sunil Gavaskar making his debut in test cricket. For the first time ever the immortal Sunil Gavaskar stepped on a cricket pitch to set sail for one of the most illustrious careers ever of any sportsman. What set him apart[Read More…]
Of all visions accessible on this living Earth, no natural sight is more beautiful that a mother and child. If the mother and child are human (no matter of what race), they are beautiful. If mother and child are lion or tiger, horse, bison, swan, or mountain sheep, beautiful. If mother and child are bear, be they black or brown,[Read More…]
Few actors ever took versatility or acting craft to such a crescendo as actor Sanjeev Kumar. He may have left us early at the young age of 47 but the stamp he left marks it’s print today and will possibly remain forever in the annals of Bollywood history.Sanjeev was simply Bollywood’s ultimate chamelion.Sanjeev Kumar traversed regions in acting almost nonone[Read More…]
Thailand was among the countries globally that promised last year to reduce the maximum speed limit to 30 kilometre per hour (30 kph) to reduce road traffic crashes, and thus, save lives. More importantly, the government of Thailand played a major role last year as part of the International Advisory Committee to 3rd Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety held[Read More…]
The recent cataclysmic year 2020 has been a true test of our resilience, and certainly some of the most challenging of our lives and career. As many buildings temporarily closed its doors, like so many museum and cultural institutions around the world, which lead to concerned about the future, but it is also an overwhelming sense of solidarity, knowing that[Read More…]
People grow up with several identities. One identity can be that of caste, another one can be that of religion , yet another one can be that of ethnicity. Some people identify themselves with the real or imaginary fame of their family or ancestors, while others tend to identify themselves very strongly with certain spiritual ( real and imaginary[Read More…]
Afrin Kale is a farmer with a degree in civil engineering. A resident of Pune city, her five-acre farm is in Pimpalgaon Ghode village of Ambegaon Tehsil of Pune district, about 80 km from the city. She travels once or twice each week to the farm, and she has hired Ravi and Roshni, a young couple, to live in the[Read More…]
Serious distortions of world food system are reflected in rather curious statistics that as many as a billion people suffer from hunger but almost double this number also suffer from obesity. However it should be clarified that obesity is not generally the result of overeating as much as this is the result of unhealthy foods churned out and promoted on[Read More…]
This writer does love sports, especially football and baseball. I was raised as a baby boomer with literally a football, a bat and glove in my hands 24/7. The only time us kids tossed aside those items and scooted upstairs was when our Moms yelled out ‘ It’s Howdy Doody Time!’ Other than that, most of us were back on[Read More…]
Marxists advocate bourgeois revolution to break the fetters of feudalism. Capitalist markets are only the most advanced form of exchange. Industrialization was the inevitable outcome of human instincts. In the Marxist version, petty commodity production freed of feudalism grows into capitalism. 1 Many people came to believe, especially after the collapse of communism, that capitalism was the natural condition of[Read More…]
They say do not contribute silver bricks for Ram temple, because it is difficult to stock silver bricks there. Funny! Union Ministers are pleading to people to contribute to the Ram Temple. This guy called Ram did not walk over silver for 14 years in the forests as per the myth. However, people are contributing silver bricks. People who broke[Read More…]
People in the Massachusetts government and in our charities strive hard to ensure shelter for all in my state. Yet many poverty-stricken folks having no charge or low charge housing and food bank food don’t want to be dependent on financial or food assistance. They definitely don’t want a handout, and find receiving it demeaning, belittling and humiliating. Instead they want[Read More…]
Written by Bharat Dogra and Jagmohan Singh Chandra Shekhar Azad has been one of the most enduring and inspiring symbols of courage and resistance in India. He symbolizes for millions of people in the country indomitable spirit of great courage in standing up for justice and freedom. As we remember him on his martyrdom day on February 27 we will[Read More…]
The promise was that by 2020, no child will be born with HIV or newly infected with HIV during breastfeeding across the world. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic posed an unprecedented challenge to health systems, the progress towards the HIV-related 2020 goalpost, despite some commendable gains, was not very encouraging. Despite global efforts to prevent HIV transmission, 150,000 children were[Read More…]
Written by Dr Swati Sapna and Upasna Gaba WHO defines Quality of Life as “an individual’s perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards and concerns.”(1) Quality of life (QOL) is a broad multidimensional concept that typically involves both positive and[Read More…]
Colonial rule is generally a relentless long story of exploitation and injustice, and this is certain true of the nearly two centuries of British rule in India. Despite this reality, however, it is fascinating to know that there were several British citizens who went out of their way to help the struggles of India against colonial rule. Some of them[Read More…]
Sardar Ajit Singh, uncle of more famous Indian hero Bhagat Singh was born on 23rd February 1881 at Khatkar Kalan village in then Jalandhar district of pre-partition Punjab, the month and year in which The Tribune also came into existence in Lahore. The ancestors of Ajit Singh had come over to village Garh Kalan, as it was named earlier, from[Read More…]
An online conversation with Avik Chanda, the best-selling author of Dara Shukoh: The Man Who Would Be King While we grapple in the throes of not just the pandemic but worldwide disruptions of democratic traditions, protests gone awry and a questioning of divisions that deepen rifts among humans, perhaps it is time to explore more syncretic lore in history and to[Read More…]
Written by Bhagyashree Dutta and Dr Chandrima Chatterjee In December 2019, in Wuhan, China, a cluster of unusual severe pneumonia cases with unknown causes were reported. These were later identified as caused by a novel strain of coronavirus [1]. Severe acute respiratory syndrome, coronavirus 2 (SARS_CoV-2) outbreaks, was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11th,[Read More…]
In recent times of Covid-19 the importance of giving adequate attention to mental health has been re-emphasized time and again. Here again, however, the new and welcome phase of giving more emphasis to mental health has not yet reached the more remote rural areas. However those with long experience of working on mental health in remote rural areas say[Read More…]
Many benefits and schemes available for persons with various disabilities cannot reach them, particularly in more remote villages, as much effort is needed for linking persons with disabilities (PwDs) with the various schemes meant for providing relief and benefits to them . Due to past neglect the number of PwDs can be not only surprisingly high in several remote[Read More…]
Written by Dr. Anamika Roy, Dr. Chandrima Chatterjee and Bhagyashree Dutta Organ donation is the procedure of surgically removing an organ or tissue from one individual (the donor) and placing it into another individual (the recipient).[1] Transplantation is required when the recipient’s organ has failed or has been damaged by disease or injury. Organ transplantation is a major medical advancement.[Read More…]
Humanity carries an historical baggage. Religion is arguably the most important component of the burden. Defined as a set of beliefs in the super natural causation of natural phenomenon, it most likely arose when humans acquired the faculty of coherent thought and communication skills. Prior to that, at the point of divergence from their closest cousins the chimpanzees, and like[Read More…]
On the eve of February 21, International Mother Language Day, the afternoon was sunny, windless and frozen. The sun came up after a two-day winter snow storm. The snow was melting and I bundled up and decided to walk along the trails in my neighborhood to get a few minutes of sun. Above me the sunlight was pouring its yellow light[Read More…]
In many big debates on agriculture in India the name of Dr. R.H.Richharia inevitably comes up, even though top establishment persons and powerful interests want to avoid this. One reason why this name of Dr. Richharia comes up time and again is that he was an extremely learned and distinguished scientist, certainly the top rice scientist from India. Many[Read More…]
People know him mainly as an activist of the famous Chipko movement, but the reality of the life of Kunwar Prasun was that his yearnings for creating a better world were constantly taking him from one struggle and constructive engagement to another. A deeply committed Gandhian all his life, Prasun was guided only by his understanding of what is truth[Read More…]
It is now well that the powerful tobacco lobby spread many falsehoods to undermine the steadily growing scientific evidence regarding the very serious health risks of tobacco. Millions of dollars were spent on this lobbying, with huge benefits doled out to corrupt scientists, decision-makers and media. The lobbyists and their collaborators made huge fortunes while public health suffered a[Read More…]
Written by Dr. Sudhamshi Beeram, Dr. Arathi P Rao and Prof. K Rajasekharan Nayar The disruption caused by COVID-19 pandemic has been drastic and perhaps one of the most dramatic transitions witnessed in the education sector. The massive and unexpected closures have forced educational institutions to seek quick fixes in different digital learning platforms (Jandrić, 2020). More than a semester[Read More…]
He was pissed! Really pissed! How could that purchasing agent asshole do this!? What a way to start his week. As it was he hated Mondays, always! The new week brought the same anxieties all the time. You work on straight commission and this is the way it is. He remembered the Hyman Roth character from Godfather 2 saying to[Read More…]
India currently is in the grip of ‘constructed Hate’. This in turn has led to violence against vulnerable sections of society, particularly religious minorities and dalits. As such one understands that love is a natural phenomenon and Hatred is generally a phenomenon constructed around misconceptions about the targeted sections of society. These targeted sections of society have to bear the[Read More…]
Written by Prabhu Dutta Shaw, Dr. Arathi P Rao COVID-19 is a disease that has indiscriminately affected individuals with unequal vulnerability. While the world is still suffering because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the risk of the emergence of a diabetes epidemic has started looming into view. On the one hand, it is seen that hyperglycaemia tends to increase morbidity[Read More…]
Written by Dr. Chandrima Chatterjee, Bhagyashree Dutta, Dr. Anamika Roy Organ donation is a much debated and sought-after topic, yet numerous bioethical controversies are associated with it. With the advent of organ black markets, revised regulations and increased precautions for donating organs. As far as bioethical concerns are there, one factor is communicating the different facets to the family members[Read More…]
It was a tense day in Peshawar in 1930.The freedom movement under the guidance of Badshah Khan and the overall national leadership of Mahatma Gandhi was progressing from strength to strength. The Khudai Khidmatgars ( literally those who have committed themselves to serving God through service to humanity ) organized by the Badshah ( literally king, so called as he[Read More…]
Today on February 11th the Indian Communist movement celebrates the 104th birth anniversary of legendary Comrade Tarimela Nagi Reddy.Without doubt he was one of the most outstanding personalities ever in the history of the Communist movement and arguably contributed more as an architect of the massline than any Indian revolutionary. Imbibing his teachings are important even today when the Indian[Read More…]
Comrade Amritpal Passi or Jagseer left us exactly 13 years ago on February 9th, tragically succumbing to Cancer. He was a state Commitee member of the Communist Party Re-Organisation Centre of India (Marxist Leninist) We also commemorated his 70th birthday on January 22nd this year. Without doubt he was one of the most defining or impactful comrades in Punjab his[Read More…]
Several events were narrated to me about ‘the left political spectrum’ before I became a member, and worked with a couple of political organisations within this spectrum in Kolkata. Before Kolkata, in Pune, I was a part of college protest events at BMCC and ILS both, after the tragic murder of the rationalist, Dr. Narendra Dabholkar in 2013, and had[Read More…]
The present world is dominated by a scientific world view which places undue focus on practicality mainly arising out of a market-oriented economic philosophy. Technological advancements have definitely helped the present society in many ways especially communication sector, education, health, travel etc. Of course, in this ‘new world’, basic sciences have become marginal and this has tremendous implications for education[Read More…]
NAZI ASCENDANCE OF WILHELM FRICK AND JOSEPH GOEBBELS–FROM MUNICH PUTSCH- STORMING TO NURENBERG LAWS-1935. (RETURN OF THE REPRESSED) – HISTORICAL LESSONS.-CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY- “Pictographic Depiction” of their Historical Ascendance to Nazi Strangulation” Following the NURENBURG Rally of Reichsparteitag ( REICH PARTY) was held in 1923 and what followed was imitation of Mussolini’s March in 1921 and seizure of power in[Read More…]
Eight years ago, I went for a blood pull early in the morning. I was instructed to eat nothing and only have plain water, coffee or tea starting at ten o’clock at night until after the blood extraction the next day. So I decided the day before the procedure that I would have spaghetti and meatballs for dinner as that[Read More…]
Religious revival and highly charged conflicts in a shrinking world make it difficult for people of competing faiths to live together. Fundamentalists of all creeds exhibit a striking commonality; an inability to think rationally. Menachem Begin bombed the King Edward Hotel in Jerusalem 1945, Communal riots in Jabalpur, in India in 1961, religious riots in Beirut in 1983, Babri[Read More…]
Today on February 7thH we commemorate the 40th anniversary of Gundappa Vishwanath’s epic 114 at Melbourne in 1981. This knock virtually took India out of the doldrums or despair to effect one of cricket’s great turnarounds to win a test and draw a rubber on Australian soil for the first time. The memories of his strokes on this day are[Read More…]
HIV science has advanced but policies and programmes have been slow to respond towards ending AIDS, said Mitchell Warren, co-chair of the global conference on HIV Research for Prevention (HIVR4P) and Executive Director of AVAC (Global Advocacy for HIV Prevention). Scientific advances have seen huge gains on HIV prevention and treatment fronts. Sadly, what has not changed is the lack[Read More…]
India along with 193 countries had promised to halve deaths and serious injuries on the roads by 2020 (as part of UN Sustainable Development Goals). But we have failed to keep this promise as the year 2020 passed by. In 2015, number of road traffic accident deaths in India were 146,133. In 2019, instead of declining (by half), the number[Read More…]
There is increasing concern that the denial of cancer care and diagnosis to a lot of patients during the recent times of lockdowns and concentrating medical attention on Covis-19 is likely to lead to an increase in cancer related deaths in the near future. To give just one indication of this, a Lancet study has presented estimates of a[Read More…]
February 6 is the 131st birth anniversary of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan also popularly known as Frontier Gandhi and Badshah Khan. He was a prominent Indian freedom fighter, a die-hard opponent of the two-nation theory and the idea of Pakistan. He was totally committed to Gandhi’s idea of non-violence, enjoyed the same stature in the NWFP also known as Frontier[Read More…]
Let me tell you, divorce with kids is no fun. In most traditional divorces the dad goes off and the mom keeps the kids. Now, many will say that the mom then has it the worst, for she has to take care of them without a dad around to help. Everyone knows that it is the mom who has to[Read More…]
When a European graduate student emailed to ask if I would participate in an assignment to “do an interview with one of my favourite authors,” I said yes. My books have not exactly been best-sellers, and so I was an easy target for anyone describing me as a “favourite author.” But beyond my gratitude for someone noticing my writing, I[Read More…]
Reader’s Guide Buddhist theory of the origin of state, as contained is Digha Nikaya, one of the collections of Buddha’s teachings) is a great ancient Indian contribution to the history of political theory. Purpose of this chapter is to explain the need of the state for the maintenance of the social order, arising due to emergence of evils in the[Read More…]
“He’s the best physician that knows the worthlessness of the most medicines.” -Benjamin Franklin The great 19th century physician, Robert Hutchinson, had a daily prayer which ran: “God! Give me deliverance from treating sick human beings as cases, not letting the well alone and making my treatment worse than his disease.” More than one hundred fifty years later we are[Read More…]
Approximately 4% of the population is born with brain anomalies that cause them to be narcissists. In dysfunctional societies, the number of people with this orientation can rise to be as high as around 20%. Partly this increase is due to certain desirable values and norms eroding for some individuals as they advance in age. Then they increasingly become comfortable[Read More…]
Today, February 4, is the World Cancer Day. We wish all the cancer patients and caregivers – family members, friends and caregivers in the cancer hospitals from all levels – helpers, nurses and oncologists our best wishes, concern and empathy. All sciences have borders of unknown. In the case of cancer it is even more so. There are a lot[Read More…]
Sex lies at the root of life, and we can never learn to reverence life until we know how to understand sex. ~ Henry Havelock Ellis (2nd February 1859–8th July 1939) Human Sexuality is a subject that is tightly wound up with hushed whispers and deadly silence, often resorting to hunting us back with physical or verbal violence. India is still[Read More…]
Revolution is inherently a very noble concept as it is based on three very important understandings for promoting improvement of human society. Firstly, there is a recognition that there is something basically wrong with the way human society is organized and functions at present, leading to avoidable large-scale distress and potential of this increasing even more in future. Next ,[Read More…]
The Indian socio political environment at this moment is witnessing a never before revolutionary churning since the days of British colonialism. History is being etched by the ongoing farmers protest against agricultural laws brought in by an inconsiderate dispensation that is hand in gloves with crony capitalists. Farmers breaking all the barriers of gender, religion, caste and geography are uniting[Read More…]
Bullying can start at an early age. It usually involves an act of ridiculing and shunning the intended victim, who is deliberately being mistreated. Moreover the bully sometimes is an individual and sometimes bullies can be an entire coordinated group of children assaulting a singled out person. All school aged bullies pick on either one child or a number of[Read More…]
While the currently available HIV prevention and treatment tools have helped reduce new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths by 23% and 39% respectively since 2010, we still have a long way to go before ending this epidemic. With 1.7 million new HIV infections and 690,000 AIDS-related deaths in 2019, one cannot but over emphasise the urgent need to have more[Read More…]
ABSTRACT Today no one is talking of controlling population any more. Fertility rates are falling all over the world and many governments are encouraging births; giving monetary support and withdrawing free contraceptives and free vasectomy operations. The new problem is that of ageing. No one is prepared to talk of decreasing the longevity. Increasing longevity has long been a marker[Read More…]
The U.S. celebrates February as Black History Month and one of the prominent prospects of African-American history is Jazz Poetry; poetry that mirrors jazz-like rhythm or feels of improvisation, i.e. the jazz milieu. Jazz poetry was initially conceived in the 1920s as a voice of acceptance, racial pride and expression of individualism. The 1950s oversaw the focus shift towards spontaneity,[Read More…]
Exactly 73years ago Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated by a Hindu Communal fanatic who made an impact on humanity at large as few individuals ever did in the history of mankind. Whether for good or evil. few men ever on the face of this earth could mobilise or influence people to the extent or manner Gandhi did .Arguably there is no[Read More…]
On 30th January, 2021, we mark the 73rd anniversary of the very date when Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated by someone who did not share his vision of an inclusive and plural India. The PUCL would like to mark this important date by remembering the values which Gandhiji stood for which are under threat today. We want to remember a Gandhiji[Read More…]
In a world increasingly troubled by violence and strife Mahatma Gandhi’s message remains highly relevant today, 73 years after the assassination of this man of peace. Gandhi’s work and writings covered a very wide range of activities, but perhaps what present-day world needs to learn most from Gandhi is his overwhelming emphasis on non-violence to resolve any conflict or[Read More…]
The concept of survival crisis refers to the emergence of life-threatening conditions on our planet due to factors like accumulation of weapons of mass destruction and a range of very serious environmental problems led by but not confined to climate change. This is the most serious problem on earth today, but the recognition of this by more and more[Read More…]
Written by Thomas Klikauer and Nadine Campbell The 2020-2021 coronavirus is by no means the first pandemic that has impacted people’s lives. Throughout history, philosophers have contributed to our understanding of what pandemics mean and how to fight them. Self-evidently, philosophers are dedicated to philosophy. Like the term pandemic originating in Greek’s pandēmos – “pan” or “all” linked to “demos”,[Read More…]
Magick is the science and art of causing change to occur in conformity with the Will. ― Aleister Crowley, The Book of Thoth ORIENTATION Throwing the baby out with the bathwater In two articles I wrote in 2019, Facing the Music: Religion, Nationalism and Sports Have Enchanted the Working Class; Socialism Hasn’t and Re-Enchanting Socialism: How Not to Throw[Read More…]
“Nothing ever seems to last promises made promises lost and pride is kept at any cost and flowers die and children cry and lonely people carry on.” She was tired, but not too tired to go to work. Matter of fact, she was lucky to be able to have a job. So many of her friends were still at home,[Read More…]
You guessed it right. I am talking about the dapivirine vaginal ring (DPV-VR), which is one of the top advances happening in the field of microbicides. It is the first long acting prevention product whose Phase-3 randomised controlled studies have shown that using the dapivirine vaginal ring reduced the risk of HIV infection in women and long-term use was well-tolerated.[Read More…]
While skirmishes continue to line the borders of India, Sameer Arshad Khatlani, author of The Other Side of the Divide, explores the deeply embedded syncretic elements in the heritage left behind by the founder of Sikhism. Part of his legacy still lives on in Pakistan. ‘Beating of Retreat’ Ceremony at International Border at Wagha. Photo Courtesy: Wiki Poet-philosopher Muhammad Iqbal’s ‘tremendous work’, wrote German writer Hermann[Read More…]
Unsung hero of freedom struggle who was brave enough to defy Hitler in his own land This story is the story of that unsung hero of the Indian freedom struggle who stood at the forefront to fight for Indian Independence, even before Gandhiji, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose (NSC Bose), and many other dignitaries who got their place in the recorded[Read More…]
While in a US rehabilitation center, one has to be able to basically accept and get along with an assortment of people from many different cultures, ethnic groups and countries. Indeed, lots of staff members in a rehab place originated from various lands around the world rather than just the U.S. All the while, most of the residents were born[Read More…]
Michael Madhusudan Dutt is considered as a poem, who played a key role in turning poetry from the age of ancient to modern. He is the only poet who dared to change the philosophy of art of epic, for which, people of Bangladesh will never forget him. Today Monday is the 197th anniversary of the birth of the great poet.[Read More…]
There are several widely held myths about human progress which have persisted widely for a long time and the wide persistence of these myths has itself become an obstacle in the path of progress. Perhaps the most common myth is of the inevitability of progress over a long period of time. It is taken for granted that if we compare[Read More…]
The 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose falls on on January 23, 2021. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a senior RSS cadre who identifies himself as Hindu Nationalist will be in Kolkata to inaugurate the celebrations given the nomenclature, ‘Parakram Diwas’ [Valour Day]. According to the RSS-BJP government January 23rd will continue to be commemorated as ‘Parakram Diwas’ in future[Read More…]
On January 25th we commemorate the 40th anniversary of the historic show trial of Chiang Ching,Wang Hognwen,Chang Chun Chiao and Yoa Wen Yuan or the’ gang of four ‘ in China. There could have been no better illustration of how after 1978 under Deng Xiaoping China turned into a Social fascist state .The verdict of the trial was the[Read More…]
A lot of problems have been caused by the fact that there has not been enough careful thinking on what constitutes human progress and it has been often just taken for granted that progress has been taking place over long periods of time, interrupted occasionally perhaps by some short-term disruptions. This leads to the curious anomaly of periods of aggravation[Read More…]
Truth as Interpretation There can be different versions of truth from what has been already accepted as truth. In 1951, renowned Japanese moviemaker Akira Kurosawa made one of the greatest movies in history, titled Rashomon. No other movie must have better investigated the philosophy of truth and justice than this movie. Rashomon establishes that it is possible for us to[Read More…]
One of the most inspiring aspects of the freedom movement in India was the combination of struggle and constructive work. While several great freedom fighters contributed to this idea, the most important contribution to this concept was made by Mahatma Gandhi. This has attracted worldwide attention and rightly so. Gandhiji understood very well that the freedom movement involves long-term commitment,[Read More…]
6th February 2021 marks the 16th anniversary of Comrade Saketh Rajan’s Martyrdom. The name Saketh Rajan needs no introduction in the revolutionary communist circles of India. It is important to remember Comrade Saketh Rajan and the path he took in order to liberate the people of this country from the clutches of Imperialism, Comprador Big Bourgeoisie and Big Landlords. Comrade[Read More…]
A futuristic vision was very much evident in India at different points of time starting with the Bhore committee report. At the international context, a futuristic orientation in health and wellbeing was discernible from an official and institutional framework related to proclamation of goals, firstly the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), followed by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Around the same[Read More…]
My encounter with tribal cuisine has been rather fresh. Till very recently, not only was I unaware of the enviable variety of the tribal palate, its nutritional value and ecological ethos too were beyond my comprehension. It should be made clear in the offing that my tryst with tribal gastronomy is limited to my area of field study in Southwest[Read More…]
It was in 2007 that I first came across the name of Sunil Kumar while reading an undergraduate course on medieval India at Delhi University. His newly published book on The Emergence of the Delhi Sultanate, 1192-1286 (Permanent Black, 2007) had already become talk of the town by that time. In fact, he was among very few active scholars working[Read More…]
‘Follow your dreams and don’t be frightened of orthodoxy’ A woman who at eighty-eight brought out her autobiography based on the urgings of among others, Alice Walker, author of the Pulitzer Prize winning novel, The Colour Purple , and Doris Lessing, the Nobel Laureate — only much later. Like Lessing’s The Golden Notebook, her biography is called The Brass Notebook. Does it talk anti-war or feminism or[Read More…]
This is one of a series of heaven-based stories, written as fantasy yet very relevant to our times. The first part of the series appeared in Countercurrents.org dated December 11, 2020 under the title ‘ Mahatma Gandhi Returns to Earth’. Gandhi had managed to get the clearance from heaven authorities for his one-day visit to Earth ,but after returning from[Read More…]
Capital punishment is the most premeditated of murders – Albert Camus What could be worse than death? The answer perhaps would be to know exactly when one is going to die. Locked up in a condemned cell, time crawls like a snail for someone who is on death row. Every waking hour of the day and night, the thought of[Read More…]
Dr. K.S.Chalam, Ex-In charge Chairman, U.P.S.C a Constitutional position (equivalent to Supreme Court Judge) during 2005-2011, is a well-known Political Economist, Educationist and a Scholar of Dravidian Studies. Prof K.S.Chalam is known throughout the country as the facilitator of Academic Staff College concept and was likewise recognised for his Studies on Higher Education, Political Economy of Development. At UPSC, he[Read More…]
Domesticating Dissent 
Oxfam report reveals malignant dependency of the pandemic on capitalist inequality 
Sharad Pawar, Peasant Politics and the Land Question 
JFK Revisited: Through the Looking Glass by Oliver Stone 
Caution: New Normal 
Arise, Pandemic Profiteers 
Managing Mild Omicron Covid At Home 
The Acquittal Of Kerala Bishop Is Best Example Of A Bad Judgement 
While acquitting Franco Mulakkal, trial court puts victim on trial 
Uprising in Kazakhstan 
Silence 
Aafia Siddiqui, Political Prisoner 
Only Fools Replay Doomsday – The Cold War, Reborn and Resurgent 
Promoting Amity in the Times of Hate 
Oxfam report highlights widening pandemic inequality in Asia 
Oxfam report “Inequality Kills”: Billionaires racked up wealth while millions died during the pandemic 
Portents of a nuclear winter on a warming Earth 
So, was the doubling of farmers’ income just another jumla? 
Souring of Taliban’s relations with Pakistan 
In South Africa as in Palestine: Why We Must Protect the Legacy of Desmond Tutu 
The American Trap 
Remembering Martin Luther King on MLK day must include a strong commitment to equality, peace and democracy 
FREEDOM: a Poetic Declaration in Two Movements 
Farmer’s Movement: Looking At The Larger Picture 
NCHRO condemns the actions of the authoritarian police in Dhinkia village 
Veil is anti-Quran 
Objection, Your Honour: Supreme Court judge S. Abdul Nazeer’s recent speech raises eyebrows 
Pakis Had Power Too 
Dangerous Precedents and Hypothetical Threats: The Deportation of Novak Djokovic 
An Epochal Decline in American Global Power 
It is high time the Indo/Ceylon accord of 1987 is fully implemented 
My Birth is My Fatal Accident: The story of many marginalised like Rohith Vemula 
No excuse not to end the acute stage of pandemic globally 
Hands off peasant land! Hands off Dhinkia! 
Copies of unjust Indian laws burnt in Canada on Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday 
Skeptic’s Alert: Washington and NYT Expose Russian False Flag 
Excellent Xinjiang Health, Growth & Education Outcomes Contradict Sinophobic US Lies 
Hindutva is European Fascism at work in India 
Remembering V.P. Singh , the Man Known for the OBC Cause 
A Flawed Program – Millions Of Expiring Covid Vaccine Doses: Poorer Nations Reject 
Binu Mathew, the editor of Countercurrents.org and the editorial team have been working selflessly with minimal funds and accepting no advertisements. Besides CC abhors foreign institutional funding, corporate funding or government aid. It has been in existence for about two decades and standing on the side of the people and taking an anti-establishment stance. To that extent it is like[Read More…]
