Letters From Readers, Readers Opinion, Readers Letters, Opinion Column

No boots on the ground

Former Ambassador Bharath Raj Muthu Kumar is right in cautioning India not to fall into the trap of the U.S. by placing our troops in Afghanistan

Big mergers

The sole purpose of the merger of Public Sector Banks (PSBs) is to increase the size of the banks. Through this, half a dozen banks, each having its

A failure of imagination

The exclusion of over 19 lakh people from the National Register of Citizens (NRC) represents a humanitarian problem of enormous proportions for the

An underrated actor

It has been my long-time grievance that actor T.S. Balaiah was never adequately feted for his acting capabilities (Friday Review, “Silverscreen’s

Kashmiri identity

The author has argued that the loss to Jammu and Kashmir due to the abrogation of special status under Article 370 may be more symbolic than real,

Unwarranted mergers

The government’s move to merge various Public Sector Banks (PSBs) and reduce their numbers to just 12, is wholly unwarranted and clearly aimed at

RBI’s income

During the course of a recent television panel discussion on the transfer of ₹1.76 lakh crore from the reserves of the RBI to Central government, an

Lifting the economy

This is with reference to the article “Hardly the brick and mortar of a revival” by Jayati Ghosh (Editorial page, Aug. 29). The author is right in

Disgraceful comment

By flippantly commenting in his maiden official media interaction since August 5 that the longer politicians stay in jail, the higher the political

The judiciary hears

The Supreme Court has done the right thing in deciding to admit and hear a batch of petitions challenging the abrogation of special status to Jammu

Bypassing Constitution

Jawaharlal Nehru said that Universal adult suffrage is not an experiment but the fulfilment of a promise. This assumes relevance in the context of

Clean cooking

Many Indian men living in rural areas maintain primitive attitudes when it comes to clean cooking methods (OpEd, “Cooking with gas, not wood”, Aug.

The wealth creators

The Finance Minister last week said the government ‘respects’ the ‘wealth creators’. It is said that more than 50% of contribution to India’s GDP

RBI’s autonomy

Despite the protestations of the Finance Minister to the contrary, one cannot but observe a significant erosion in recent times in the autonomy of

Travel notes

The train friendship, as narrated in the article, “Confession coupe: instant friendships and quick lies” (Open Page, August 25) took me down memory

Amazon fires

A callous attitude towards forest conservation would only spell doom for species dotting our earth. While it is heartening that the international

Rights custodian

The article, “Time to strike the gavel” (Editorial page, August 27) raises important issues of individual and community liberty and the judiciary’s

India on Kashmir

It is a clear diplomatic win for India on the sidelines of the G7 summit as far as a resolution of issues between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir

War on plastic

Plastic has engulfed the world and become an existential threat to most life forms (“Let us wage a war on plastic, says PM”, August 26). Even the

Media freedom

The Press Council of India’s stand is detrimental to democracy, which requires both freedom of speech and freedom of the press (Editorial, “On the

On top of the world

P.V. Sindhu’s performance in the World Championships final was extraordinary (“Sindhu scales a peak no Indian ever has”, August 26). It is incredible

No lessons learned

When we commit a mistake, there are three things we should do about it: admit the mistake, learn from it and not repeat it. It is frankly embarrassing

Restoring normalcy

The BJP has always criticised former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi for imposing Emergency, but what is happening in Jammu and Kashmir today is simply

Warnings on economy

It is indeed a surprise that the nation has not reacted to the need of the hour to the extent the situation demands. The economy that is on downturn

Amazon wildfires

The fires in vast stretches of the Amazon rainforests in northern Brazil (the world’s largest, covering an area of some 5.5 million sq. km) are

No winners in n-war

A change of policy will not alter the dynamics of a nuclear attack — both sides will suffer incalculable damage (“Should India tinker with its ‘No

A consensus builder

Veteran parliamentarian Arun Jaitley, who set a high benchmark for integrity, had played a critical role in Narendra Modi becoming the Prime Minister

Anything but normal

The treatment meted out to Opposition leaders Sitaram Yechury, D. Raja and Rahul Gandhi, who have all been turned away from Srinagar airport at

Fighting the IS

It is not new for the U.S. to create pandemonium in peaceful nations and ask other nations to deal with the consequences (Front page, “Trump suggests

In custody

The wheel of history has come full circle with the arrest of former Union Minister P. Chidambaram while the incumbent Home Minister is Amit Shah.

Visionary monk

Swami Vivekananda did play a major role in helping Indians cultivate our own version of secularism. However, while talking of his contributions, a

Dealing with Trump

Despite India having made it clear to the Americans that third-party mediation is not welcome when it comes to resolving the Kashmir issue, it is odd

Late-night arrest

It won’t be an overstatement to say that political vendetta is writ large on the exertions made to frame and fix P. Chidambaram and humiliate him and

Growing up years

When my father accompanied me on a medical appointment for a complaint of high BP, the doctor advised me to take up swimming if a daily walk was not

Journal editorial

It may be the editorial policy of the medical journal, The Lancet, to comment on policy that harms people’s health (OpEd page, “Recognising fair

Aadhaar linkage

The petition pending in the Madras High Court pertaining to linking social media accounts to Aadhaar poses a dangerous threat to their privacy. With

Kashmir special status

The continued lamenting on the abrogation of Article 370 and the division of Jammu and Kashmir as well as fear of a possible conflagration expressed

Farewell Khayyam

A long-standing link with the ‘golden era’ of Hindi film music was snapped in the death of the famous music maestro Khayyam. Though he composed

Unifying the forces

A synergy between the forces is necessary and a Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) can provide the best answer to this problem (Editorial, “Soldier

A far-fetched view

The writer is taking a far-fetched view by saying that the rest of India has never integrated itself with Kashmir (“The idea of India is failing,”

The govt. we deserve?

The govt. we deserve?The adage that people get the government they deserve rings true in today’s India. The electorate has voted Bharatiya Janata

Policy of No First Use

Is the government contemplating a change in its ‘No First Use’ policy to checkmate Pakistan or is this mere posturing to lure the people into

Unrest in Kashmir

It is a matter of concern that the situation in Kashmir is still not normal (“Curbs on movement back in Kashmir following clashes”, August 19).

Head coach again

The reappointment of Ravi Shastri as Team India’s head coach was on expected lines and is wise (‘Sport’ page, “Ravi Shastri’s tryst with head coach

A rebellious Hooda

In spite of its poor performance in the 2019 Lok Sabha election and knowing well that it is a sinking ship, the high command of the Indian National

Special bond

Two reports from Kerala, “Pet dogs save goat herd amid Kerala floods” (August 18) and “Lone sentinel of Kavalappara rescued” (August 17), once again

A note on CSR

In mandating a corporate social responsibility spend under the Companies Act, we in India have followed a widely accepted global trend. But a

Kashmir’s special status

The honourable Vice President of India begins his article (Editorial page, “A considered step that opens up new vistas”, August 17) with the words,

Climate planning

The increasing frequency of heavy rainfall in many States is a reality, probably linked to climate change. The havoc being caused is a wake-up call.

Population control

The most significant issue that the Prime Minister highlighted in his Independence Day speech on Thursday was of population control (“PM puts

UNSC meeting on Kashmir

China, being a permanent member of the UN Security Council, seems to be pandering to the whims of its all-weather friend, Pakistan. The decision, at