Indian external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj has threatened to never issue Indian visas to Amazon officials again–unless they remove all products that “insult” the Indian national flag. “Amazon must tender unconditional apology. They must withdraw all products insulting our national flag immediately,” she tweeted on Wednesday night. “If this is not done forthwith, we will not grant Indian Visa to any Amazon official. We will also rescind the Visas issued […]

Nina Merchant (37) can’t stand the thought of losing another mother. She was a newborn when Kulsum Hussain joined the family as a nanny in the US and became her ‘Maaji’. Hussain nursed her through sickness and health, doubled as a confidante in the heady teenage years, and offered her just the comfort she needed at the death of her mother. Merchant is now trying to pay back. For the […]

 Five incredible routes to experience India A road trip is the best way to explore any destination. The roads you take, the people you meet, the food you try out from a street-side vendor — they all give you an insight into what makes the destination beautiful. It is not just about sight-seeing, experiencing different cuisines at top-rated restaurants and cafés, or checking in at impressive hotels. Like they say […]

Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being anti-Hindu, senior members of Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha have said that the Centre’s demonetisation move would be the beginning of the end of his rule. The saffron organisation alleged that the policy had been introduced just before the start of the Hindu wedding season while BJP members were encouraging Islamic banks in the country. Questioning the government’s currency move, Mahasabha’s national general secretary […]

Smoking costs the global economy more than $1 trillion a year and will kill one-third more people by 2030 than it does now, according to a study by the World Health Organisation and the US National Cancer Institute published on Tuesday. That cost far outweighs global revenues from tobacco taxes, which the WHO estimated at about $269 billion in 2013-2014. “The number of tobacco-related deaths is projected to increase from […]

As 2017 takes off, the focus on the economic arena seems to be shifting towards ‘Minimum Basic Income.’ Yes you read it right! After GST and demonetisation became the show stoppers for 2016, the 2017 game plan is perhaps steering in the direction of guaranteeing a universal basic income. Well the informed circles indicate that the Modi Government is most probably already working on a report that targets granting Universal […]

– ‘Moonlight’ wins Best Motion Picture – Drama Isabelle Huppert wins Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama for ‘Elle’ – Casey Affleck wins Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama for ‘Manchester By the Sea’ – La La Land bags Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical. – Emma Stone wins Best Performance By An Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for La La […]

Raghavendra Singh, 29, has recently begun working as an Uber driver in Lucknow. As he pulls out of the local airport (which boasts a poster declaring it “the world’s No 2 airport”), Mulayam Singh Yadav towers on a hoarding near the over-head tracks for the city’s new metro. The poster, even from the ground, is visibly rippled, struggling against the wind to keep its place, twinning the politician’s desperate attempt […]

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament can call Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of demonetisation if it is not satisfied with the answers given by top finance ministry officials and the RBI governor Urjit Patel. The committee had sent a detailed questionnaire to Patel regarding demonetisation. A PAC meeting on this issue has been called on January 20th, in which Patel, finance secretary Ashok Lavasa and economic […]

In bibliotherapy, the therapist first talks to the patient. If it is a high-school student, he tries to find out details about the student’s life—what interests him, and slowly the conflicts and issues that mentally affect him—post which the therapist slowly tries to create a process. We’ve been told time and again about the benefits of reading—it opens up a whole new world, boosts imagination, helps improve language skills and […]