The release of Parikrama's 'Tears of the Wizard' last month didn't just mark their first official music video since 'But It Rained' in 2001, it heralded a drastic change in the mindset of the veteran Delhi-based classic rock group that had steadfastl

The Journey So Far The K. Kasturirangan committee has submitted the Draft National Education Policy, 2019. The new education policy could come in November. Five public universities have been given the 'Institution of Eminence (IoE)' tag; five private

Actress-theatre director Lillete Dubey says putting up a play is "like giving birth to a baby". By that analogy, she has nurtured 24 children under her banner Primetime Theatre Co in the past 28 years. Some, like Dance Like a Man, 30 Days in Septembe

The Journey So Far The first session of the 17th Lok Sabha was the most productive since 1952, with a record 32 bills passed The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, bifurcating the state into UTs of J&K and Ladakh, will, says the government, facili

The first time I met Kiran Nagarkar, it was to interview him about his 2006 novel God's Little Soldier. He spoke about the book's themes, about the dangers of certitude ("we must never stop holding our beliefs up to the light"), about the need to lea

The Journey So Far Pending nearly for two decades, Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally announced the appointment of a Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), a single-point military advisor to the government, in his Independence Day speech this year. Ratified

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has held a series of press briefings lately to announce measures to bring relief to the economy. The conferences have a secondary aim-to dispel the widespread notion in industry that the Prime Minister's Office cal

The Journey So Far The Narendra Singh Tomar-led ministry of rural development (MoRD) aimed to complete 1 million natural resource management (NRM) or water conservation projects under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in i

After a lull of a few months, Chhattisgarh is in election mode again. A byelection is due in the Scheduled Tribe assembly segment of Dantewada on September 23. The seat fell vacant after BJP MLA Bhima Mandavi was killed in an IED explosion by Maoists

The Journey So Far Budget 2019 incentivised multinationals to set up mega-manufacturing plants in sunrise and advanced technology areas via a transparent, competitive bidding process Pending GST refunds due to MSMEs shall be paid within 30 days. In t

Shehla Rashid, JNU student leader and aspiring politician from Kashmir, is the latest target of the sedition law. Her tweets on alleged army excesses in Kashmir prompted Supreme Court lawyer Alakh Alok Srivastava to file a complaint with the Delhi Po

The Journey So Far IRCTC is leasing out the Lucknow-Delhi and Ahmedabad-Mumbai Tejas Express trains to private players. Onboard services are being outsourced through an open bidding process; ticketing will stay with the IRCTC. The Indian Railways has

B.S. Yediyurappa, the new Karnataka chief minister, took over to helm a BJP government on July 26 after the fall of the Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition. With a thin majority to defend, a flood crisis in the state and three deputy CMs crowding

The Journey So Far More state highways will be developed by the NHAI under the National Highway Development Programme. With its AAA rating, it has access to capital at much cheaper cost. Road project allocations dipped in FY19 to 5,493 km-a five-year

Rahimbigha, nestled in the foothills of Khakhaunda Pahad in Bihar, is a picturesque and mostly peaceful village in the Nawada district of Bihar. Especially when compared to its Maoism-hit cou­sin across the mountains, Koderma in Jharkhand. But every

The Journey So Far If Modi 1.0 was focused on supplying electricity to every home in the country, then Version 2 is all about making the supply 24x7 and affordable. Electricity generated from renewable sources will form a larger portion of the power

Hindu Persecution Complex? Vikram Chandra's blockbuster Mumbai novel Sacred Games was published over a decade ago. Its Netflix adaptation, the first original Indian content made for the international streaming service, premiered over a year ago. Rame

It is difficult to describe William Dalrymple. He does not write fiction, but his books are as readable as fiction. He is not a historian as historians understand their craft: he does not plumb obscure sources to modify marginally the picture of the

The enduring mystery of the Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC) just became a little less mysterious last week. Or did it? The carefully coordinated near-simultaneous release of two long-awaited papers, analysing the DNA of ancient Harappans (and others)

SPAIN www.campusspain.es The 2019 QS World University Rankings has seven Spanish universities in its Top 50 under 50, with three in the Top 10 Global MBA rankings in Europe. Spain is now a major destination for international students. One concern is

ISRO chairperson Dr Kailasavadivoo Sivan spoke to Group Editorial Director Raj Chengappa on the Chandrayaan 2 mission and whether it had impacted the space department's future plans. Excerpts: Q. What is the significance of finding the lander on the

The Journey So Far The National Medical Commission Bill, 2019, has been passed by both houses of Parliament, heralding a new era in medical education The ministry of health and family welfare, through a notification, has put in the public domain the

When you are desperate for success, here's what you don't do: find yourself a leader known for originality and ethics, at the cost of success. Leeds United Football Club (LUFC) did exactly that in 2018. It recruited a new manager, an Argentine called

The Journey So Far The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019, criminalising triple talaq, passed The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act, 2019, passed, with amendments, including death penalty for aggravat

For rallyist Gaurav Gill, winning the Arjuna award was a "shocker". He says he is still overwhelmed. Gill, however, does not seem to measure the impact of this prize in strictly personal terms. His success, he feels, might have a positive outcome for

The Journey So Far The Modi government has reiterated, in the new budget, that 17 sites in the country would be developed as world-class tourism destinations. An estimated 20 million Indians go abroad on vacation every year. PM Modi has urged this gr

You were on a hiatus from 2012-16. Was it because of a lack of good roles or was it a self-imposed break? It was a combination of a few personal issues, and not getting the work I really wanted, something I have grappled with a lot in my career. Bef

The thing that strikes you about the Turkish Airlines business class the wonderful moment you enter is the absence of noise. This is in part because of the exceptionally well-trained cabin stewards and in part because of Denon headphones that cancel

Soaring 820 feet above ground, and overlooking the Chao Phraya river, Bangkok's iconic all-suite hotel, Lebua Hotels & Resorts, that is home to Sky Bar and Mezzaluna stands tall. Absolutely everything about the brand screams luxury. What works in its