Author: Dilip

I'm a scholar, writer and teacher; and my blog is designed for intellectual exploration. It carries no advertisements and requires no cash subscription

Bharat Bhushan: BJP up to old tricks in UP as assembly elections approach / Arvind Kala: Nobody's converting Hindus to Islam & Christianity

The UP election, political pundits tell us, will impact the re-election chances of Prime Minister Modi in 2024. Is this why the prime minister finds himself in the state almost every week? Today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will inaugurate the Rs. 700 crore Kashi-Vishwanath Temple Corridor Project by carrying a container of “Ganga-jal” from Lalita… Read More Bharat Bhushan: BJP up to old tricks in UP as assembly elections approach / Arvind Kala: Nobody's converting Hindus to Islam & Christianity

Dilip

Will Omicron Finally End the Covid-19 Pandemic? By Stephen Londe, MD

It’s possible that the latest Covid-19 variant is actually a blessing in disguise.    In 1796 an English physician, Edward Jenner, observed that milkmaids who had gotten cowpox were immune to smallpox. He surmised, rightly, as we now know, that the disease was related. Smallpox, which has killed hundreds of millions of people dating all… Read More Will Omicron Finally End the Covid-19 Pandemic? By Stephen Londe, MD

Dilip

Patricia Mukhim: Nagaland’s people deserve neither AFSPA nor gun culture

The sight of a dozen or more coffins being laid in a row while young, helpless widows and elderly grief-stricken parents come to terms with their loss is an image that is both outrageous and painful. The dead were ordinary citizens going home to their village in Nagaland after work. In one shattering moment, their… Read More Patricia Mukhim: Nagaland’s people deserve neither AFSPA nor gun culture

Dilip

With cheers and songs, farmers call off year-long agitation (Photos) / At Singhu border: ‘fight will continue… don’t feel like going back’

Farmer leaders said that they will again meet on January 15 to see if the government has fulfilled their demands. At the meeting, a call on resuming protests will be taken, said SKM member Gurnam Singh Chaduni. (Express photo by Tashi Tobgyal) https://indianexpress.com/photos/india-news/farmers-agitation-suspended-protestors-victory-marches-7664183/ It’s a Wrap: States ready jalebis, dhols as farmers prepare to head… Read More With cheers and songs, farmers call off year-long agitation (Photos) / At Singhu border: ‘fight will continue… don’t feel like going back’

Dilip

Gujarat HC pulls up civic body: How can you decide what I eat?

Hearing a plea by 25 street vendors that the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation had seized their carts following objections from councillors to the sale of non-vegetarian items, the Gujarat High Court Thursday came down heavily on the AMC and instructed it to consider the cases “as expeditiously as possible” if approached by the petitioners within 24… Read More Gujarat HC pulls up civic body: How can you decide what I eat?

Dilip

PHIL TORRES: How the New Atheists merged with the far right

New Atheism appeared to offer moral clarity, it emphasized intellectual honesty and it embraced scientific truths about the nature and workings of reality. It gave me immense hope to know that in a world overflowing with irrationality, there were clear-thinking individuals with sizable public platforms willing to stand up for what’s right and true — to… Read More PHIL TORRES: How the New Atheists merged with the far right

Dilip

The Resilience of Life

As the pandemic stretches on, our collective ability to weather adversities and bounce back to emotional stability is being challenged daily. Many of us have suffered significant trauma from illness, hospitalization and death. Many more have experienced job loss, economic uncertainly and financial instability. And everyone has had to cope with an unprecedented uprooting of… Read More The Resilience of Life

Dilip

Justice not about money… punish officers responsible: father of killed Naga miner / Meghalaya to urge Centre to repeal AFSPA / Nagaland killings: Direct marise…they shot right at us, no signal to stop, we did not flee, says ambush survivor

NB: My deepest condolences to the families of the deceased miners. That one of them had just been married and that two of them were twins makes it all the more tragic. God bless the departed souls. DS The Monday after Langwang and Thapwang attended a wedding, the 25-year-old identical twins left Oting with their… Read More Justice not about money… punish officers responsible: father of killed Naga miner / Meghalaya to urge Centre to repeal AFSPA / Nagaland killings: Direct marise…they shot right at us, no signal to stop, we did not flee, says ambush survivor

Dilip