Introduction: Jamia Millia Islamia as an institution, from its inception in the 1920, has celebrated the interplay of ideas and practice. Ideas of composite nationalism, secularism, rebellion, inclusion, diversity and compassion are lived practices in the everyday life of Jamia. The university was founded in Aligarh and was housed at Krishna Ashram, as it ‘rebelled’… Read More Seminar issue on Jamia at 100
For centuries trade of exotic Eastern goods reached the markets of the Mediterranean Europe, Africa and Turkey. The very first ‘product’ – if we can call it that – were the slaves of the Punjab. Besides some gold, the most profitable product in the loot of the Turkish-Afghan invader, Mahmud of Ghazni, were slaves. In… Read More Majid Sheikh – Harking Back: Lahore’s ancient slave trade and the Aleppo connection
Deb Mukharji: For Indian Diplomats in Pakistan, the Run up To the 1971 War Was a Very Tense Time 1971. The most cataclysmic year in the history of the sub-continent since the Partition of India in 1947. Even as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Muktijuddho, the War of Liberation, India’s decisive military victory over Pakistan and the… Read More Deb Mukharji: For Indian Diplomats in Pakistan, the Run up To the 1971 War Was a Very Tense Time / Bharat Bhushan – Dhaka disconnect: Excellent relations marred by violent protests
NB: Fedor Stepun was a Russian writer, editor, professor, political commentator. In 1922, he. along with over 200 non-communist intellectuals perceived as hostile to the Bolshevik regime. was arrested and ordered to leave the USSR within a week. They included the philosopher Nikolai Berdyaev, and scores of other academicians, writers, artists, editors of journals etc. DS… Read More Fedor Stepun, 1884-1965
A team of researchers from Columbia University has found that radiation levels from atomic testing in the Marshall Islands are still too high for human habitation. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes radiation readings of soil samples from four of the islands, and what they found. Over the… Read More Radiation from atomic testing in Marshall Islands still too high for human habitation (2019 report)
During its first decade as the globe’s great hegemon at the close of World War II, Washington quite self-consciously set out to build an apparatus of awesome military power that would allow it to dominate the sprawling Eurasian landmass. With each passing decade, layer upon layer of weaponry and an ever-growing network of military bastions… Read More Alfred McCoy: The crumbling delusion of Washington's endless world dominion
On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the extraordinary experience of the Paris Commune, it is fundamental to draw a number of lessons from it. The measures a government takes regarding its Central Bank, the debts of working class people, public debt and private banks are decisive. If a popular government does not implement… Read More Eric Toussaint on 150 years of the Paris Commune of 1871
She unearthed fantastic prehistoric creatures that had been lost to the sands of time, and her achievements — overlooked and uncredited while she was alive — also almost remained buried. An unsung pioneer of paleontology, Mary Anning is finally getting some of the recognition she deserves thanks to the tireless work of academics and campaigners.… Read More Katie Hunt: 'Ammonite' and 5 more works about women overlooked by history
The theater historian Louise Kerz Hirschfeld, who was married to the production’s set designer, Leo Kerz, remembered the mood inside the theater on the opening night. “People were weeping,” she said in a phone interview. “At the end there was this deadly silence. Then, people got up and there was a 20-minute applause. For the… Read More Rolf Hochhuth, Who Challenged a Pope’s Wartime Silence, Dies at 89 ( May 2020). By Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim
France has consistently underestimated the devastating impact of its nuclear tests in French Polynesia in the 1960s and 70s, according to groundbreaking new research that could allow more than 100,000 people to claim compensation. France conducted 193 nuclear tests from 1966 to 1996 at Moruroa and Fangataufa atolls in French Polynesia, including 41 atmospheric tests until 1974… Read More France has underestimated impact of nuclear tests in French Polynesia, research finds
