India Today

The government seems to be in a hurry to reject the findings of a survey on household consumption expenditure for July 2017-June 2018, which showed consumer spending falling for the first time in over four decades. However, all indicators seem to sug

The Rajapaksa clan has dominated Sri Lankan politics for a decade-and-a-half now, and the election of Gotabaya Rajapaksa to the country's presidency restates that reality. The Rajapaksas are people's politicians-they speak the tongue of the Sinhala s

With an appearance on Amazon Prime's One Mic Stand, MP Shashi Tharoor has added the hat of stand-up comic to his already brimming rack of selves. Q. You're used to public speaking, but was stand-up comedy a different beast altogether? A. Unlike regul

In the course of reading Edward Snowden's autobiography Permanent Record, I came across a striking passage which I shared with a friend on WhatsApp. A few hours later when I visited YouTube, the first recommended video that popped up on my screen was

At the outset, House Arrest (directed by Samit Basu and Shashanka Ghosh) seems to have an intriguing premise: Karan (Ali Fazal), a young stock trader, withdraws from society and has managed to stay home for 279 days. He appears to be content, but in

When British-Indian sarod player and fusion artist Soumik Datta was a toddler, he remembers seeing a Royal Bengal Tiger in the Sunderbans. Over the phone from London, he says, "When I confirmed this with my mum, she said, 'Oh I can't believe you reme

TIGER MOTHER BJP leaders in Mumbai believe Uddhav Thackeray's wife Rashmi Thackeray plays a significant role in influencing his political strategy. This, they say, is one reason why party president Amit Shah did not call on the Sena chief after the a

In December 1969, the then prime minister Indira Gandhi inaugurated the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA)'s studio, auditorium and library at their premises on Bombay's Bhulabhai Desai Road. At a one-week festival that followed, P.L. Des

Aranyaka brings together two contemporary interpreters of Hindu mythology, the enormously popular Devdutt Pattanaik and the rather more esoteric Amruta Patil. Together, they explore some of the most complex ideas of Hinduism as articulated in the Ved

Speaking to us last week, a day before Motichoor Chaknachoor hit theatres, Nawazuddin Siddiqui sounded tranquil: "I had filmed Sacred Games just before I did this film. Aisi halki film kar ke mujhe bahut raahat mili (acting in a film this light broug

Underside: Nepal's metal wonders-now globally known after tours in Europe-will bring the heavy to Weekender with their raw, nu-metal-inspired sound that will get the moshpits going Job Kurian: Currently one of Kerala's most loved crooners, Kurian's d

Martin Scorsese recently likened Marvel movies to theme parks. He explained that franchise films are "perfect products" for easy consumption where the creative role of the director to introduce something novel to actors and the audience is irrelevant

In a moving post on the JNU stud­ents' agitation against the proposed fee hike, one of my Ph.D scholars wrote: 'Do you remember the story [of] a security guard in JNU who cracked the entrance exam? [It] will never be repeated if the fee hike comes t

Women's self-help groups (SHGs) boosted by micro-finance investments have in the past decade ensured inclusive development of the disadvantaged in Telugu society. A slew of government schemes have empowered poor women and offered resources to hone th

In 2013, at a festival organised by UK-based arts oufit, Milapfest, at the Southbank Centre, London, Chennai-based contemporary-classical pianist Anil Srinivasan and Bengaluru-based veena artist, Jayanthi Kumaresh, conceived an idea called The String

Among all Indian states, Assam has the highest share of Muslims in its population-about 35 per cent. Monitored by the Supreme Court, the state published a National Register of Citizens (NRC) in August this year to detect illegal immigrants from Bangl

Thanks to its strategic location and geo-political significance in the context of India's relationship with China, as well as the Narendra Modi government's push for border road development, Arunachal Pradesh has seen a massive development of its roa

Dnyanesh Hadkar, chief executive officer at Audi here in Miramar, Panaji, has a satisfied look on his face. The showrooms of Audi and even superbike Harley Davidson have seen good footfalls and a number of enthusiastic buyers in the past couple of mo

As the Manohar Lal Khattar government enters its second term, its biggest challenge is to create job opportunities and encourage entrepreneurship in the state. In its previous term, by ensuring full compliance with the Business Reform Action Plan 201

Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami explains how the state has consistently fared well in an interview to Amarnath K. Menon. Excerpts: Q. How has Tamil Nadu performed so well overall? Tamil Nadu was set on a high growth trajectory by our late CM,

At a recent investor summit in Dharamshala, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked prospective investors to tap into the potential of the better-educated and healthier workforce coming out of Himachal Pradesh. Chief Minister Jairam Thakur reiterated that

Whichever government has been in power in Chhattisgarh, a state that came into being on November 1, 2000, it has stuck to the slogan of inclusive development. Besides, most policy initiatives launched in the state in the past few years, be it the CM

When Raghubar Das took over as Jharkhand chief minister in December 2014, he learnt that not even 10 per cent of the 34,939 state-run primary and middle schools provided benches to students. "I decided this could not continue," says Das. His governme

Gujarat always had strong fundamentals, so it is no surprise that it is India's leading state in economic terms. It contributes 7.7 per cent to the country's GDP, even though it comprises only 5 per cent of India's population. Poverty reduction has b

That Kerala breathes freely despite rapid urbanisation is thanks to the green belts and tree cover in the state. The 2018 State Economic Review data for env­ironmental quality indicates that average concentration levels of sulphur dioxide and oxides

In June 2015, presenting its first budget, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi doubled the allocation for education to Rs 9,836 crore, making one of its several governance priorities clear. Four years on, the government's efforts in this ar

Competitiveness is a universal and time-tested idea to promote growth. Competition among states, to outdo each other in economic development and social welfare, could well be the trigger our country desperately needs to rev up the slowing economy. Th

Though there are claims of millions of houses being constructed across the country under the Union government's flagship housing scheme, the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, only seven states have submitted their data for a social audit as of August. Mani