Special News

India to spend $35 bn on military aviation by 2030

India will be spending a massive $35 billion on military aviation over the next 20-25 years for the simple reason that most of the existing aircraft need replacement sooner or later - and there is also a requirement for more aircraft with newer technology.2:01 PM on February 11

Bollywood craze grips even distant Peru

The tourist guidebooks to Peru will tell you about the Incas, Machu Pichu, the Amazonian rainforests, the soft Alpaca wool and the beautiful textiles. They are ignoring Bollywood. I knew I could expect to hear the sound of Quena, an Andean flute playing the folk tune El Condor Pasa, wherever I went. The tune was popularized around the world by the Simon and Garfunkel song 'If I could'. But nothing in the world prepared me for the music I heard in a small Peruvian village called Ollantaytambo, in the Andean mountains. As I walked past straying Alpacas and old women in their traditional embroidered skirts, I encountered a piece of unmistakable India in Quetchua land.8:31 AM on February 05

When Milkha basked in Jeev's achievements

'Ay ki hunda hai (what is it?), Milkha Singh asked in Punjabi when Vijayalakshmi Pandit, India's envoy in Britain, conveyed to the 'Flying Sikh' in 1959 that the government had awarded him the Padma Shri.9:32 AM on January 30

Muharram has got Indianised over the years

Quite spiritedly, fervently and emotionally like the Ramlila, Muharram in India observes the victory of virtue over evil. It commemorates the martyrdom of Hazrat Imam Hussain, the younger grandson of Prophet Mohammed. In India, it is revered by all communities, especially the Hindus in Varanasi, Lucknow, Allahabad, Amroha, Indore, Nagpur, Jaipur, Phagwara in Punjab, Bhopal and Kanpur.12:30 PM on January 29

The dying art of Urdu calligraphy

Qalam (a reed pen) no more seems to be mightier. The might of Urdu calligraphers is put to ultimate test not by the sword but by what the calligraphers at the offices of Urdu newspapers Rashtriya Sahara, Siyasat, Inquilab, Qaumi Awaz and Nai Duniya call 'bijli ka qalam' (electric pen, referring to the computerised type-setting).10:31 AM on January 28

Three bullets and the sounds of silence

While the nation observes the anniversary of the martyrdom of Mahatma Gandhi Jan 30, few people are aware of the exact place where one of the most infamous political assassinations in history took place.9:30 AM on January 28

NRIs fill with pride on Republic Day

Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) are filled with pride on every Republic Day. The marching bands leading the magnificent contingents of India's defence forces smartly decked out, the cultural tableau presenting its traditions and progress, the folk dancers and the school children all add up to an impressive panorama of India on the move.5:32 PM on January 26

Party is over, NRIs flying back

It's time to head back home for NRIs who came to India to enjoy the festive season. Now that Pongal, Uttarayan (for Gujaratis), Lohri and Makar Sankranti are all over, NRIs are reconfirming their seats to get back. With Navratri in mid-October, NRIs start planning their India trips for Diwali and the New Year and return at the latest by mid- or end-January.10:31 AM on January 23

PBD showed that India does care for NRIs

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) is the big NRI show. For just $250, the price of a family dinner in the US, NRIs can come real close to the top leaders of India. They can get to know their thoughts on NRIs and enjoy the compliments. They also voice their concerns and extract promises from the government to look into them. They come to say: 'I love my India!' And PBD tells them: 'India cares!'9:32 AM on January 17

Maoist challenge a growing worry for government

Maoists have emerged as a major challenge to the Indian state, although insurgencies in Jammu and Kashmir and the northeast claim more lives than the violence unleashed across the country by the ultra-left radicals.9:31 AM on January 16

Parsvnath Developers tops bid for Chandigarh film city

The Rs.1.91 billion (191 crore) bid by Parsvnath Developers, who have tied up with noted film director and comedy actor Satish Kaushik, has topped bids for the Chandigarh Film City project to be launched here.12:30 PM on January 13

Congress reaches out to the BJP: sign of a new mindset?

Has the Congress experience in running a coalition made it more amenable to wider consultations? Otherwise, it is difficult to explain why Prime Minister Manmohan Singh suddenly reached out to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the main opposition party, to seek its view on various issues.9:31 AM on January 06

Russia will help build world's first thermonuclear reactor

Moscow, Jan 4 (RIA Novosti) A total of 13 billion euros will be spent on building the world's first International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) with help from several countries including India.11:31 AM on January 04

Best returns for NRI investors in 2007

In 2007, where can NRIs get the best returns for their investments in stocks? The quick answer is, in the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) countries - away from the traditional markets of the US, Britain, Japan and Europe that offer more security but lower returns.9:33 AM on January 01

BJP's temple chant - like a stuck gramophone record

It was a sign of the Bharatiya Janata Party's confused ways that after two days of Muslim-bashing at its national executive meeting in Lucknow, the party asked the Muslims to vote for it in the Uttar Pradesh elections in order to oust the Mulayam Singh Yadav government.9:31 AM on December 30