Column: Strangulating the Economic Dreams of Millions
December 27, 2020Covid has given the Government a fig leaf to cover up its disastrous handling of the economy
Column: The Cult of the large Peepul Tree and the Indian National Congress
December 27, 2020The peepul tree or the Ficus religiosa, to give it is the scientific name, is not just native to India, but an intrinsic part of the culture. It is under this tree that Savitri negotiates for Satyavan’s life with Yama, the God…
Column: The Clash of Competing Rights
December 27, 2020this appeared in the FPJ The state of Idaho in the United States of America claims to fame is that it produces over a third of all the potatoes produce in the country. A few months ago, this sleepy little state was…
Column: #COVID and the Educational Digital Divide
December 27, 2020This appeared in the FPJ There still seems no end in sight to the COVID crisis. There is the Russian vaccine, Sputnik V, but across the world scientists have raised a red flag at the rush to hit the market at the…
Column: American Exceptionalism and the forced sale of Tik Tok
December 27, 2020this appeared in the FPJ Tik Tok ; banned in India, and facing a ban in the USA unless it is sold to an American buyer, Tik Tok faces a tough battle ahead. But, what does this mean for Government control on…
Column: Vultures of the Mainstream Media
December 27, 2020this appeared in the FPJ It isn’t that there is a dearth of news. We are in the throes of the first global pandemic in almost a century, and the COVID crisis shows little sign of respite. There is the clash with…
Column: Advertising Pressure on Platforms that run Hate
December 27, 2020This appeared in the FPJ Last year, when things were somewhat normal, and people went to see comedy shows, comedian Agrima Joshua, during a live show, cracked a joke about the Shivaji statue that is to be installed in the middle of…
Column: #COVID and the Assault on Women’s Rights
December 26, 2020This appeared in the FPJ The victims of COVID go beyond those who have been infected by it. The worldwide lockdowns accompanying the coronavirus have put people’s livelihood in danger, and it is showing. 2.7 billion people, or 81% of the world’s…
Column: #COVID and the Disruption of Organised Religion
December 26, 2020This appeared in the FPJ The first lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID was over a 100 days ago. For many of us, our lives have not yet got back to normal. As countries come out of lockdown, many states, many…
Column: #COVID and the need to reimagine a more equal world order.
December 26, 2020This column appeared in the FPJ “Only a crisis – actual or perceived – produces real change. When that crisis occurs, the actions that are taken depend on the ideas that are lying around.” said the economist Milton Friedman. Right now, the…