In a bid to reduce global air pollution, Swedish home furnishing company IKEA on Thursday announced its plan to turn rice straw into a new renewable material source for its products. The project, part of the company’s ‘Better Air Now’ initiative, will begin from India and is focussed on New …

Oxford Dictionary has declared the adjective ‘toxic’ as the Word of the Year for what it says reflects the ethos, mood, or preoccupations in 2018. The word was selected from a shortlist that included ‘gaslighting,’ ‘incel’ and ‘techlash.’ The data showed that, after ‘chemical’, ‘masculinity’ is the most-used word in …

Russia hosted a regional conference on Afghanistan last week to nudge the reconciliation process between the Taliban and the Afghan authorities. The Taliban were represented by the political council chief, Sher Mohammad Stanikzai. Representatives from Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, the U.S. and India swere also …

The making of a coalition is no more a matter of choice for the parties opposed to the right-wing authoritarian postures of the BJP but a command from the common people. The churning on the ground among almost all social groups is exerting pressure on the Opposition parties to jettison …

The Dalmia Bharat Group has moved the Supreme Court challenging the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) order approving UltraTech Cements Rs. 7,950-crore bid for Binani Cement. Confirming the development, Mahendra Singhi, MD and CEO, Dalmia Cement (Bharat) Limited told The Hindu , “We have filed an appeal in the …

The debate on opening the shrine to all women is revealing deep casteism and misogyny Sabarimala, it appears, could be our new touchstone for understanding liberals, especially from Kerala. The intellectual emptiness in the arguments of Congress MP Shashi Tharoor and former Foreign Secretary Nirupama Menon Rao on the Sabarimala …

The GSLV-GSAT launch enhances India’s capacity to meet its communication needs The Indian Space Research Organisation has marked a big milestone by successfully testing its heavy-lift launcher while launching an advanced communication satellite. It plans to use this for the Chandrayaan-II moon mission in the early months of 2019. On …

The Union Steel Ministry is concerned over the low level of per capita steel consumption in India, according to Steel Secretary Binoy Kumar. “Per capita steel consumption of steel in India at 69 kg [according to Joint Plant Committee data] is still low compared to the world average of 214 …

Israel and Hamas need to pull back to allow humanitarian intervention in the territory The sudden flare-up in Gaza between Palestinian militant groups and Israel is another grim reminder that the situation in the blockaded Mediterranean strip remains precarious. The latest violence was triggered by a botched spy operation by …

In many recent judgments, the Supreme Court has become hyper-activist in making laws. But can judges legislate? This question has already been answered in the past by the court. In Ram Jawaya v. The State of Punjab (1955), the court observed: “Our Constitution does not contemplate assumption, by one organ …