Editorials

For some momentous stories or judgments, we need to tweak the design template to introduce a one-page explainer Last week, we heard a slew of important Supreme Court judgments that have a profound impact on our lives. The available space within newspapers cannot do justice to the findings of the …

Electric vehicles will reduce fuel bills and are an integral component of the smart cities project Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das recently announced that his government has introduced electric vehicles for official use. While 20 vehicles have been acquired for the first phase, another 30 are expected to be added …

It is time for legislation to thoroughly clean up electoral politics While the issue of candidates facing criminal charges getting elected to Parliament and State legislative Assemblies is often raised, initiatives to minimise the problem, if not eliminate it completely, have been rather slow. One had hoped that the judiciary …

The Supreme Court will soon have the opportunity to consider the differing opinions in the Sabarimala verdict On September 28, the Supreme Court delivered a 4:1 verdict, in Indian Young Lawyers Association v. State of Kerala , throwing open the doors of the Sabarimala temple to women of all ages. …

He was a man who looked for a harmonious universe, but he was also a pragmatist As the world prepares to celebrate Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary in 2019, opinions and views about his person and his non-violent technique of struggle remain deeply divided. For some, he was a puritanical, …

‘Martian soil’ on sale for $20 per kg, plus shipping The University of Central Florida has a unique product to sell: experimental Martian and asteroid soil. Interested buyers can get it for $20 a kg plus shipping. The astrophysicists developed the soil based on the chemical signature of the soils …

A heartening feature of health care in India is how life expectancy has increased — from 32 years in 1947 to 68 years today. However, this has resulted in newer health challenges, notably cancer and dementia. Dementia refers to deterioration in a person’s mental faculties and is serious enough to …

Omega-3 fatty acid found to help treat cardiovascular events Cardiologists may one day have a new tool to help prevent heart attacks and strokes in some high-risk patients: a prescription drug that contains large doses of EPA, an omega-3 fatty acid contained in fish oil. A large clinical trial found …

An airline has a separate seating policy for this sub-species of homo sapiens When I first arrived on this planet as an Indian male all those years ago, I never imagined that one day I would become a personal embodiment of a global embarrassment. Please don’t think I am exaggerating; …

Imagining the Mahtab Bagh as it was supposed to be The most visited monument in India is the Taj Mahal in Agra. Guides and locals tell you stories of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan’s love for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, when they walk you up to the main chamber housing the …

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 …