To tackle malnutrition, food prices must be regulated and the PDS strengthened in both developed and poor States Despite being one of the fastest growing economies in the world, India has been ranked at 103 out of 119 countries, with hunger levels categorised as “serious”, in the Global Hunger Index …

Jawaharlal Nehru’s greatness is that the nation often misses his empathy, intellect and competence India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, is now moving through an eclipse that B.R. Ambedkar experienced and yet emerged from more luminous. During his life, Ambedkar was vilified by both the left and the right, and …

The Sabarimala and Asia Bibi cases put the spotlight on how institutions adhere to constitutional principles On the streets of India and Pakistan, a frightening message is being sent out: that courts must not rush in where politicians fear to tread. In matters of faith, courts must simply sit on …

The U.K. Supreme Court has made the mistake of conflating speech with conduct in the gay marriage cake case Bakeries in the U.S. and the U.K. have become the latest sites of contestation about fundamental rights. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a Christian baker’s right to refuse to …

The human lifespan is increasing by approximately three years every generation — a trend likely to continue, a Stanford study has found. A team of researchers analysed life expectancy data from the past 50 years and found that people who survive to age 65 are continuing to live longer than …

Sri Lankan President Sirisena must find a way to work with Ranil Wickremesinghe After three weeks of political turmoil, Sri Lanka’s controversially dismissed Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, appears to have gained the upper hand. A majority of lawmakers backed a no-confidence motion in Parliament against Mahinda Rajapaksa, a former President …

But the technological and medical hurdles are immense Deadly radiation from the cosmos, potential vision loss, and atrophying bones are just some of the challenges scientists must overcome before any future astronaut can set foot on Mars, experts and top NASA officials said on Tuesday. The U.S. space agency believes …

U.S. FDA is giving companies two years to purge products that use any of the six artificial flavours Six artificial flavours are being ordered out of the food supply in a dispute over their safety, but good luck to anyone who wants to know which cookies, candies or drinks they’re …

Rupee fall, lower fares hit bottom line Low-cost airline SpiceJet Ltd. posted a second quarter net loss of Rs. 389.4 crore for the period ended September 30, 2018 on account of fuel price increase, rupee depreciation and lower fares. The firm had posted a net profit of Rs. 105 crore …

Structural reforms are needed to bring accountability to the credit rating industry After the IL&FS crisis, the Securities and Exchange Board of India is now trying to increase the level of scrutiny on credit rating agencies that failed to warn investors about it. SEBI has come out with new guidelines …

Revenues increase on automotive sales; however, the firm’s margins contract Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) reported a better-than-expected 26% increase in its second quarter net profit to Rs. 1,779 crore even as the maker of utility vehicles and tractors witnessed margin contraction. The financials include numbers of its commercial vehicle unit …

A large number are living outside reserves, making the species vulnerable Why is the death of tigress Avni controversial? Since 2016, the deaths of 13 people in the Pandharkawda divisional forest of Maharashtra have been attributed to tigers and at least five of them to Avni, a 6-year-old with two …

Headline inflation falling, doesn’t warrant conservative policy, says CLSA’s Wood The RBI is being too conservative in its monetary policy and the government is right in criticising the central bank on this count, according to Christopher Wood, managing director and equity strategist at CLSA, a capital markets and investment group. …

Currency rises 0.5% to close at 72.31, oil slips to $65 a barrel The rupee appreciated 0.5%, or 36 paisa, against the dollar as international crude oil prices dropped to $65 a barrel, which is seen as positive for the current account deficit since India imports 80% of its oil …

The Madras High Court to-day [November 14, Madras] struck down the revised higher telephone tariffs holding them to be “arbitrary, unreasonable and unjust.” Mr. Justice T. Venkatadri, delivering the judgment, said that to his mind the imposition of fee for each extra call constituted an “intolerable burden.” The Department had …

Resignation comes even as the truce with Hamas holds Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman announced his resignation on Wednesday and called for early elections after a sharp disagreement over a Gaza ceasefire deal, throwing the government into turmoil. Mr. Lieberman also said his party was quitting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s …

Pakistan has “no immediate plans” to grant ‘Most Favoured Nation’ (MFN) status to India, said Abdul Razak Dawood, a senior aide to Prime Minister Imran Khan. “At present, we have no immediate plans to grant MFN status to India,” he said on Tuesday. India has already granted this status to …

His faction has refused to accept the vote against him Mahinda Rajapaksa will address Parliament on Thursday, a day after a majority of legislators in the House voted him out. “It will be on the current political situation,” his son and Hambantota parliamentarian Namal Rajapaksa told The Hindu . Following …

Mira Ricardel reportedly clashed with the First Lady during Africa trip last month It may be the end of the road for Deputy National Security Adviser Mira Ricardel’s career at the White House, as there was speculation on Tuesday that she had been told to go by U.S. President Donald …

British PM strikes a note of defiance in Parliament while trying to silence critics of the agreement British Prime Minister Theresa May, striking a note of defiance, insisted that the deal she had struck with the EU negotiators was one that delivered on what the British people voted for, as …