Editorials

English needs to be used along with other Indian languages, and vice versa. We will deprive ourselves if we turn this into an ‘either-or’ issue In India, English is like one of those damp squib crackers that tend to explode in your face. Sometimes, the faces are literary, as in …

People of different faiths must find a fit between their own distinctive way of reaching the ultimate and a common, basic framework for living together A Minister of the West Bengal government, Siddiqullah Chowdhury, reportedly remarked recently that for Muslims, “our holy scripture, the Quran Sharif, is supreme and if …

Inadequate facilities for reconstructive surgery and limited staff are affecting cancer treatment in government hospitals Eight-year-old Syed Farhan from Warangal, Telangana was diagnosed earlier this year with Ewing’s sarcoma, a rare type of cancer that occurs in bones or in the soft tissue around the bones. He then underwent six …

PM calls for ‘wholesome education in the country’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday emphasised the importance of character building over literacy and called for “wholesome” education in the country. “Knowledge and education are not restricted to books,” he said, while addressing the inaugural ceremony of the ‘Conference on Academic …

Prohibition amounts to smear on individual dignity, says SCBan is the result of hegemonic patriarchy in religion, says CJIIt is a form of untouchability, says Justice Chandrachud The Supreme Court, in a majority opinion of 4:1 on Friday, lifted the centuries’ old prohibition on women from the age of menarche …

Merely tinkering with import dutieswill not narrow the current account deficit The Centre’s decision to increase customs duty on imports of 19 “non-essential” items amounts to tinkering at the margins to address a structural macro-economic issue. Using tariffs to curb imports of these items will not have a significant impact …

With its Sabarimala verdict, the SC underlines the Constitution’s transformative power The Constitution protects religious freedom in two ways. It protects an individual’s right to profess, practise and propagate a religion, and it also assures similar protection to every religious denomination to manage its own affairs. The legal challenge to …

The Supreme Court decision to decriminalise adultery is a step in the right direction Following a series of landmark judgments delivered by the Supreme Court this month, it passed yet another remarkable decision on Thursday. It decriminalised the offence of adultery by holding Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code …

The first death anniversary of Santoshi Kumar, a Dalit girl from Simdega, Jharkhand, was this week. She died of hunger, at the age of 11, a few weeks after her family’s ration card was cancelled by the State government because they failed to link it to Aadhaar. The Aadhaar judgment …

In 1341, the ancient port town of Muziris on the Malabar coast was destroyed by a Periyar in spate. This August, the prized archaeological remains of this legendary trading post nearly met with the same fate, report S. Anandan and Shyama Rajagopal In its long history, the Periyar river, which …