The December 1978 Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) might sound obscure, but its global repercussions were of seismic proportions. Deng Xiaoping’s series of economic policies, termed “reform and opening up”, went on to catapult China from an agricultural backwater into …
Read More »Yearly Archives: 2018
The case against surveillance
Last week, a Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) notification authorising 10 Central agencies to intercept, monitor, and decrypt online communications and data caused a furore in both Parliament and the wider civil society. The notification was described as an incremental step towards a surveillance state. The government’s defence was equally …
Read More »New Horizon hurtles toward historic flyby
A NASA spacecraft is hurtling toward a historic New Year’s Day flyby of the most distant planetary object ever studied, a frozen relic of the early solar system called Ultima Thule. The unmanned spaceship New Horizons, 6.4 billion km away, is poised to zoom past Ultima Thule at a distance …
Read More »Faking it! Sculptor gets laughs with monuments of made-up tragedies
It all started in 2016 with a bronze statue commemorating the tragic day in November 1963 when a giant octopus upended the Staten Island ferry, killing nearly 400 people in New York. Wait, what — a giant octopus? Artist Joseph Reginella smiles. Yes, you read that right. In 2017, another …
Read More »Scientists ‘sew’ with just sound waves
Scientists have successfully used sound waves to levitate and manipulate multiple objects simultaneously for the first time, using the system to “sew” a thread into a piece of fabric. The system could be use to acoustically stitch up internal injuries or deliver drugs to target organs. Sound exerts a small …
Read More »97.5% of items in 18% GST slab: Jaitley
About 97.5% of goods are already in the 18% or lower Goods and Services Tax bracket, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley wrote in a blog post on Monday, adding that though the GST revenue targets set are ‘very stiff’, several States are already achieving those targets. Mr. Jaitley also wrote that …
Read More »AbbVie to develop Lupin’s cancer drug
Lupin Ltd. on Monday announced a partnership with global pharmaceutical giant AbbVie for the development and commercialisation of its novel oncology drug to treat hematological cancers. AbbVie has entered into a licensing agreement with Lupin for its MALT1 (Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue Lymphoma Translocation Protein 1) inhibitor programme and taken the …
Read More »‘No orders received on Afghan drawdown’
The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan has not received orders to pull forces out of the war-torn country, NATO confirmed on Monday, days after it was revealed that President Donald Trump plans to withdraw 7,000 troops. General Scott Miller’s remarks on Sunday capped a tumultuous few days for Afghanistan as …
Read More »Indonesia tsunami toll climbs to 373
Experts warn that more deadly waves could slam the devastated region near Sunda strait Dozens of filled body bags were hauled away from buildings flattened by Indonesia’s volcano-triggered tsunami on Monday, as the death toll climbed to 373 and search teams pushed on with the grim hunt for corpses. Rescue …
Read More »‘Italy did not pursue Agusta leads’
The agencies investigating the alleged bribery in AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal are of the view that Italian authorities did not properly pursue the international dimensions of money laundering involved in the transactions under scrutiny. “In any bribery case, the consideration originates from somewhere, can be routed through entities or individuals …
Read More »India to host newly elected Bhutan PM
India will host the newly elected Prime Minister of Bhutan from December 27-29, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Monday. A press release issued by the Ministry said that the visit by Dr. Lotay Tshering, 50, will take place to mark the golden jubilee of the diplomatic relations between …
Read More »Centre wants fake news traced
Pointing that a number of lynching incidents were reported in 2018 mostly due to fake news being circulated through WhatsApp and other social media sites, the government said social media has brought new challenges for the law enforcement agencies, including inducement for recruitment of terrorists, circulation of obscene content, spread …
Read More »No easy passage for triple talaq Bill
Notwithstanding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assertion that the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2018 will be passed, the numbers are stacked against the legislation in the Rajya Sabha. The new triple talaq Bill that makes the offence (of resorting to triple talaq) a bailable one is slated …
Read More »Our focus is farm sector: Modi
With farmer issues taking centre stage in the run-up to the Lok Sabha election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the BJP-led government was making dedicated efforts to bring a fundamental transformation in the farm sector. The Centre was taking a new initiative with a scientific approach to bring …
Read More »Bullet train project unviable, says report
The Narendra Modi government’s Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project may turn out to be a loss-making proposition and burden Maharashtra’s already dwindling finances, the latest information obtained by an activist under the Right to Information (RTI) has revealed. As per the RTI response, a State Transport Department report has highlighted several …
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