In dissolving the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly without giving any claimant an opportunity to form the government, Governor Satya Pal Malik has violated constitutional law and convention. Mr. Malik’s stated reasons for his action — “extensive horse trading” and the possibility that a government formed by parties with “opposing political …

World Bank data, in 2015, showed that nearly 65% of health-care expenditure in India is “Out of Pocket” (OoP). A report by the World Health Organisation has shown that around 3.2% of Indians would fall below the poverty line because of high OoP health expenditure. Thus, a national health insurance …

Mr. Modi has not yet appointed a Lokpal, and Ms. Raje recently extended the tenure of the Lokayukta to eight years from the earlier five, causing a severe dent to the integrity of the institution.If Mr. Modi tries to honestly find out about the actual scam in the Pradhan Mantri …

The INS Arihant, India’s first nuclear ballistic missile submarine that completed its sea patrol earlier this month, will contribute significantly to making India’s deterrence capability more robust. Submarine-based nuclear capability is the most survivable leg of a nuclear triad, and its benefit must be seen especially in the light of …

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has come out with new rules for re-classification of a promoter as a public investor, wherein an outgoing romoter will have to relinquish special rights as well as control over the affairs of the listed firm and not be allowed to hold …

At the height of the global financial crisis in 2008 when liquidity crunch hit the Indian credit market, the then finance minister P. Chidambaram constituted a liquidity management committee headed by the then finance secretary Arun Ramanathan. The decision raised eyebrows as liquidity management is a key function of the …

Are oil marketing companies recovering the Rs. 1 per litre price cut of October 4 which they had made on the Centre’s instructions and absorbed into their financials?While oil marketing companies (OMCs) deny that they are doing so, , analysts argue that the pricing mechanism is so opaque and complex …

The Taliban in Afghanistan have not yet shown any sign that they are serious about ending their 17-year insurgency despite U.S. efforts to push for a fresh peace process, the country’s de facto Prime minister has said.Abdullah Abdullah, who serves as “chief executive” of the unity government in Kabul, struck …

An inquiry by Britain’s Home Office of its use of an anti-terror rule to deny highly-skilled workers who had made errors in their tax submissions has concluded that it was “reasonable” for decision-makers to adopt the approach they did but has acknowledged the need to overturn at least 12 rulings.In …

U.S. President Donald Trump has become embroiled in an extraordinary row on Wednesday with the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, claiming “shocking” bias against his policies in parts of the judiciary.He singled out the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, whose jurisdiction includes left-leaning California, tweeting that its …

The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved the extension of term of the commission examining the issue of sub-categorisation of other backward classes (OBCs) in the Central list till May 31, 2019, according to an official statement.This is the fourth extension of term given to the commission formed in October last …

A Ministry of Home Affairs document in the Supreme Court on Thursday shows that vacancies in the country’s forensic labs are alarmingly high even as cases pile up in trial courts and undertrial prisoners languish in jails.The forensic laboratories, at both the Central and State levels, are used to examine …

Civil-military relations in the Defence Ministry are strained once again, this time over the issue of junior officers staying in hotels and not Army guest rooms when on temporary official travel.Expressing concern at the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (PCDA) asking for a Non-Availability Certificate (NAC) and rejecting refund claims …

The government had planned to introduce the Right to Information (Amendment) Bill, 2018, in the Lok Sabha in July this year. But the Bill was not tabled following protests from civil society and the Opposition. The Bill proposes to give the Centre the power to decide the tenure and salaries …

Under attack from the Opposition for his decision to dissolve the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, Governor Satya Pal Malik on Thursday claimed that “extensive horse-trading” was going on in the State and dismissed allegations that he was acting on the Centre’s directions.Maintaining that it would have been impossible for parties …

An American national who tried to enter the North Sentinel Island in the Andaman was killed due to “misplaced adventure” in the highly-restricted area, a senior government official said on Thursday. This was his fifth visit to Andaman and Nicobar Islands and he had come on a tourist visa. He …

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday directed the State machinery to work on “mission mode” to solve the pending cases under the Forest Rights Act to extend justice to tribals and ensure farm land is given to them. The government has also agreed to review progress on these cases every …

The move was described by a Pakistani Minister as the “victory of peace lobbies” in both countries.Officials of both countries will meet soon to discuss the logistics of the corridor and the point of border-crossing where the roads, which pilgrims on the Indian side will take from Dera Guru Nanak …

Waste disposal is a huge challenge for every Indian city, but Bhubaneswar has found a special use for some of its metal waste — it has transformed them into works of art. The Bhubaneswar Open Air Museum of Waste-to-Art, coming up in the Kalinga Nagar township, has 28 impressive sculptures …

District Collector P.B. Noohu has extended the prohibitory orders clamped on Sabarimala, Pampa, Nilackal and Elavumkal under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure by four more days, till November 26 midnight.The prohibitory orders clamped on these places for seven days on November 15 midnight were to end on …