Innholdsfortegnelse for March 4, 2024 i India Today

Election funding of political parties is a messy and controversial affair in almost all democracies across the world. On February 15, the Supreme Court of India struck down the electoral bond scheme that the Modi government had notified in January 2018. The mechanism enabled a wide range of contributors, particularly corporates, to purchase these bonds in denominations ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1 crore from the State Bank of India and donate it to political parties of their choice. There was no maximum donation limit. Nor did political parties need to disclose the names of the donors—they only had to declare the total amount they received. The Centre had said the bonds would end the practice of “under-the-table transactions” and reduce black money in political funding. However, in a…

Anger Management is a history of India-Pakistan diplomacy from its earliest days. In the numerous books on this theme, Bisaria’s work is distinctive not least because he has been the Indian high commissioner to Pakistan and to date the only one who has been expelled. That distinction followed as part of the package of Pakistan’s reactions to the legislative changes with regard to Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019, which led them to downgrade diplomatic relations. During Bisaria’s tenure in Islamabad, another low point had been the Pulwama terrorist attack followed by the Balakot air strike. If all this suggests a monochromatic relationship of unadulterated negativism, it was also the case that work on the Kartarpur Sahib visa-free corridor began and continued uninterrupted in this period through all the nosedives…

Union minister of road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari has won praise from both sides of the political divide, even in Parliament. Now, plaudits come from someone who isn’t too big a fan of the Narendra Modi government. In an interview with a YouTuber recently, economist and former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan said that Gadkari had done wonders in his job. The minister, Rajan said, obviously knows how to push his staff to deliver and that he was one of the most open among his colleagues in the cabinet. “I think we need more such ministers,” Rajan went on to add, saying that what the country needs is “a band of equals” in the cabinet who can take the country forward.…

The deputation period of Anjaneya Kumar Singh, the IAS officer who sent Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and former Rampur MP Azam Khan to jail on charges of hate speech in the 2019 poll campaign, has been extended by another six months. Singh had also got Azam’s MLA son Abdullah disqualified after an inquiry found he had fudged his age in the poll affidavit. The 2005-batch Sikkim cadre IAS officer, currently the commissioner of Moradabad, came to Uttar Pradesh (he is from Mau) in 2016, when the SP was in power. Deputation rules say an IAS officer cannot serve in another state for more than five years. Singh is in his eighth year in UP. So, someone in Lucknow is obviously looking out for him. Or is it reward for putting…

First, the stereotype. He was 16 when his parents bought him a used motorcycle as a Christmas gift. Learning to ride in the paddy fields of Shoranur, his hometown in Kerala’s Palakkad district, the teenager was impressed by a bunch of riders practising for a race on a dirt track. A week later, Harith Noah was competing in his first race. Despite a good start, he came last. But the plot had turned. Two years later, at 18, Noah had won the first of his five national supercross championships. On January 19, 2024, he finished the world’s toughest rally raid, the Dakar, in 11th position, the highest-ever ranking by an Indian. He did not know that he had come first in the Rally2 category in which he was competing. A…

If you thought that Victorinox’s pursuit of excellence extended only to its legendary Swiss Army Knife™, you may want to check out the new Victorinox Dive Pro, which allows the brand to transfer its meticulous attention to watch detail. This new watch is ideal for those who look to performance and precision as key parameters to purchase decisions. Each of these ISO 6425 certified diver’s watches is tested for a water resistance up to 300 metres and can brave sand, dirt, impact, and vibration. As per diving norms, shock resistance and anti-magnetic protection ensure punctuality and reliability. What’s more, clear lines, strong shapes and innovative material combinations come together to embody the brand’s signature design. The watch also comes with a five-year warranty. The new Victorinox Dive Pro offers a…

An invocation to the gods; an homage to the blushing bride and a peerless companion in beauty rituals, the rose celebrates the glory of India in all its dimensions. But Gul Rouge, a roseled, India-inspired scent from LilaNur Parfums expresses this affinity through the lens of French master perfumery. Unlike the cloying sweetness of traditional Indian rose attars and scents, this perfume captures the almost liquid sweetness of the Rose Centifolia with the spicy, more complex notes of Rose Damascena to summon a sensual essence that is dewy fresh with an air of subtle sweetness. Pitching LilaNur Parfums is India’s first luxury fragrance house, Spice noses through this India-scented love letter to the world with brand creator Anita Lal (founder of Good Earth) and fragrance and brand expert Paul Austin.…

The author, a former foreign secretary, has post-retirement directed his accumulated experience and knowledge of China into three well-received books on China’s political evolution and on the China-India interface. This is his fourth and is somewhat different being an immersion into the archives of four inter-governmental relationships in the 1950s: between China, the US, Britain and India. The context is the post-World War II world with an ascendant US and Britain in decline but seeking to retain influence in China and Southeast Asia. The US increasingly viewed China through the prism of the Cold War: a Communist power to be confronted or contained. The British favoured compromise and not confrontation given their economic interests in China. This meant, in effect, an Anglo-US competition over China and the Far East. Gokhale’s…

The joke in Maharashtra BJP circles is that in its pursuit of a ‘Congress-mukt Bharat’, the party is turning into a ‘Congress-yukt BJP’, considering the number of Congress leaders who have crossed over and gotten to enjoy the perks of power. The heartburn among loyalists is evident. One of them—Chinmay Bhandari, son of senior BJP leader Madhav Bhandari—recently took to X to say how his father had been repeatedly overlooked for positions in the legislature and the Rajya Sabha despite his five-decade-long service to the party. Loyalty, it seems, is not enough to earn you a reward in the BJP.…

The light has gone out of the legal fraternity’s lives. In the death of eminent jurist Fali S. Nariman on February 21, India has lost one of its greatest conscience-keepers. I had invited him for an event at KIIT School of Law in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, in 2008. When one of the speakers went on and on, Nariman asked me to slip him a note with ‘KIS I’ written on it. Not understanding, I looked at him in confusion and he told me the speaker is to be told: “Keep it short, Idiot”. Nariman also wrote a personal letter to me on August 18 last year, appreciating an article I had written for The Indian Express, and asked me to write a book. There is probably no lawyer, no teacher of…

Q. You have been pushing hard to make distribution companies efficient. How are those reforms taking shape? The viability of the power sector was shaky when I joined. The outstanding dues of generation companies (gencos) were in the region of Rs 135,000 crore. The AT&C losses of the distribution companies (discoms) were around 27 per cent. Today, the AT&C losses are down to about 15.5 per cent. The outstanding dues have been pared down to Rs 60,000 crore. The current payments are all up to date; so our discoms have become very viable. If a discom does not pay for the power it has drawn, within the stipulated time, the new norms enable power exchanges to disconnect their connectivity to electricity markets. Q. A few states are promising cheaper or…

₹ 1.47 lakh cr. Estimated final cost of KLIS project, against Rs 81,911 crore, the cost projected to the CWC ₹ 1.42 lakh cr. needed by the state in the next 14 years—ranging from Rs 712.44 cr. to Rs 14,462 .15 cr. a year—for debt servicing ₹ 47,000 cr. Off budget borrowings since 2016-17 used to fund project (73% of the expenditure incurred) ₹ 17,653 cr. spent arbitrarily on pumps, motors and auxiliary equipment without assessing market rates ₹ 10,647 cr. Estimated power charges (including fixed charges) for 14,344 mn units a year ₹ 2,685 cr. ‘Possible undue benefit’ accrued to contractors ₹ 40,288 acres Current command area of the project, against a target of 1.83 mn acres Source: CAG and expert committee report. Some figures are estimates for when project is complete…

The doubts started creeping into Bharat Pannu’s head on the third day of the Ultra Spice Race—a 1,750-km ultra cycling endeavour that got underway on January 22 from Bogmalo Beach in Goa, headed towards Ooty, before making its way back to the starting point. He had ridden about a thousand kilometres until then, solo and self-supported. But now, pedalling in the wee hours of the morning around Kalpetta in Kerala, he didn’t see the sense of the entire effort.“The next cyclist was trailing me by a good distance. It breaks you down mentally because riding solo is one thing, but riding without competition makes things really difficult,” says Pannu, who is 41. It was a race he had won twice before. Yet, he persevered with the effort, slow and steady,…

Iconic comic book writer and publisher Stan Lee once said, “A picture is worth a thousand words, but a comic is worth a million.” Fans and viewers flocking to Comics in Bengal, an ongoing exhibition at the Kolkata Centre for Creativity, would agree. The show is being held in collaboration with Comics Culture Collective, a group of comic scholars, bibliophiles, researchers, graphic illustrators and cartoonists who have curated and collated their personal collections and sourced other works from fans to create this unique show. That this often-dismissed medium, in a regional language, would find centre stage was not something its enthusiasts ever expected. “When I came across a book on comics from Thailand [The Art of Thai Comics by Nicolas Verstappen], I had wondered idly whether a book on comics…

Q. How did it feel to play such a negative character? It is against my nature to be vindictive but then that is the true challenge for an actor—to portray what is not natural to you with conviction. I believe that every character has many shades and one has to take into account all the factors that have contributed to the creation of that personality. To play a role different from your own personality is an artistic achievement and I am glad I could accomplish it. Q. Singer or actor, which do you lean more towards? Thanks to my singing for films, I am popular as a singer, but I have actually been a theatre person for over four decades. My heart is in theatre. I have written five adaptations…

WELFARE SCHEMES ₹52,009cr Allocation for FY25 for five welfare schemes guaranteed by Congress before assembly polls ₹28,608cr GRUHA LAKSHMI A scheme that provides ₹2,000 monthly allowance for women ₹9,657cr GRUHA JYOTHI To supply free electricity up to 200 units per household ₹8,079cr ANNA BHAGYA Under which an extra 5 kg of rice is provided to ration card holders ₹5,015cr SHAKTI Karnataka govt’s free bus travel scheme for women ₹650cr YUVA NIDHI Unemployment allowance for degree and diploma holders CAPITAL EXPENDITURE ₹55,877Cr Allocation for capex for FY25 BIG PROJECTS ₹27,000cr Estimated cost of 73 km Bengaluru Business Corridor to be constructed under PPP model ₹3,048cr Estimated project cost of Pavinakurve mega port in Uttara Kannada district, again in PPP ₹5,736cr Estimated project cost of 875 km state highway development, with external…

A veteran diplomat’s account of India’s growing stature in international fora. Kumar was ambassador to France at the time of the Paris Agreement in 2015 and played a pivotal role in India’s negotiations in that historic accord. A scholarly but upbeat narrative of the tactics that have seen India emerge as a serious player in the international arenas of trade, climate change and conflict diplomacy, culminating in the G20 Summit in Delhi last year. A less than triumphalist tour of India’s internal disparities—and how we have been outstripped on significant social development indicators of health, education, nutrition, child welfare and gender parity by smaller and poorer neighbours such as Nepal, Sri Lanka and, most strikingly, Bangladesh. Enlivened by extensive reporting as well as data, this book also addresses the emerging…

Temple runs are becoming frequent in Gujarat as the Lok Sabha election closes in. Amid the ongoing state budget session, February 15 was declared a holiday as Speaker Shankar Chaudhary took 156 BJP MLAs to the Ambaji temple in Banaskantha district. At the event, covered live by the regional media, the young minister for home, Harsh Sanghavi, caught the attention of the cameras as he displayed his dexterity with the shankhnaad, dhol, manjira, and even a harmonium. Now, we hear, another trip is planned once the assembly session is over. No guesses on the destination—the Ram temple in Ayodhya, where Sanghavi will get to test his skills again.…

When the electoral bonds scheme was introduced in the Finance Bill, 2017—only a few months after the Narendra Modi government’s other grand, sweeping move to cleanse the country of black money overnight: demonetisation—it was touted as a move designed to “make political funding more transparent through the flow of clean cash”. So, whether you were an individual, an NGO or a corporate, you could purchase these interest-free, tax-exempt bonds from the State Bank of India (SBI) and contribute to the political party of your choice, which could then encash the same within a stipulated time-frame. The transparency, however, did not extend to the identity of the donors, who could remain anonymous. This, the then Union finance minister Arun Jaitley, the chief architect of the scheme, had reasoned was necessary to…

Sometime in the middle of January, Hiralal Nagar, the energy minister in the newly sworn-in BJP government in Rajasthan, visited Union power minister R.K. Singh’s office in New Delhi with a request. He wondered if his state could get additional electricity along with some relaxations in lending norms. Distribution companies, or discoms, in Rajasthan have a cumulative debt of Rs 79,370 crore, according to the latest filings with the state’s regulator. It’s a nightmare for the new government, which has to honour electricity subsidies committed by its predecessors. Singh’s response to Nagar was a polite “sorry”. Nagar is not the only one; many of his counterparts and chief ministers from other states have been approaching the Union minister with similar requests for either more electricity or waiving their discoms’ debt…

On February 13, the Telangana government headed by new chief minister A. Revanth Reddy took all its ministers and legislators on a ‘study tour’ of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS). Located in the state’s north, on its border with Maharashtra, KLIS had been a pet project of the previous chief minister, K. Chandrashekar Rao or KCR. Launched in KCR’s first term as CM, in 2014, it was meant to end the water woes of the semi-arid regions of the state. Except that it is turning out to be a Rs 1.5 lakh crore white elephant that might well fall short of delivering what KCR had promised. The February 13 expedition was for the government team to assess for itself the quality of work undertaken on the project so far.…

What immediately strikes you as you walk up to TRI, the latest art centre in South Kolkata’s Ballygunge area that opened on January 19, is the triangular shape of the 1940s mansion. The name TRI is a nod to the same as well as a punny invitation to visitors to “try” out the art, culture and discourse the space aims to offer, director Madeleine St John points out. “We aim to make it an accessible space, open to anyone in this city,” explains St John. “In addition to display of cultural artwork, TRI [will function] as a multidisciplinary platform that will have a full calendar of cultural programming, workshops, performances, lectures and panels providing a robust engagement with art.” Open To Sky Architects restored the mansion that belonged to the…

WHILE THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO FUEL YOUR enthusiasm or drive your passion, ask any committed gearhead and you’ll know, “it’s not about the destination, it’s about the ride.” That is why this Spice Auto Special is a loving testament to the streamlined beauty and raw power of automobiles. But while love for cars is an enduring affair, extended fidelity to a single one can be tough. As Caroll Shelby, American automotive designer, racecar driver and entrepreneur often said: “I’ve always been asked, what is my favourite car, and I’ve always said, the next one.” If you are anything like Shelby, there’s plenty to rejoice about among the new cars lined up for 2024 with the number and frequency of launches in the premium and luxury categories in full throttle.…

With an authentic menu, scenic riverside views, and a delightful array of innovatively crafted Thai-inspired cocktails, this long-awaited restaurant is perched inside a glorious contemporary glass house, and sits cheek by jowl with the resplendent St. Anthony’s Church. Fireback has been launched by EHV International (Indian Accent fame) with legendary Chef David Thompson as Culinary Director. Drawing inspiration from the majestic Siamese Fireback, the national bird of Thailand, it derives its name from this emblematic creature, while also paying homage to the fiery-grilled culinary techniques that underscore the creation of their delightful dishes. Why all the fuss? Because the cooking at Fireback will blow you away—literally and figuratively. Thompson successfully summons his culinary expertise to craft authentic Thai curries and stir fries that anchor an extensive menu boasting tantalizing small…