By A Representative  Researchers at Shiv Nadar University, Delhi-NCR, have announced the development of a rare-earth-free composite material, ZnO@β-SiC, with applications in energy-efficient lighting, artificial intelligence, and environmental solutions. This groundbreaking innovation marks a significant advancement in materials science.

- પ્રો. હેમંતકુમાર શાહ   કાલે વ્યાપારી ધોરણે ભજવાયેલું એક નિતાંત સામાજિક નાટક જોયું. નામ છે 'ઓ વુમનિયા'. સૌમ્ય જોશી એના લેખક અને દિગ્દર્શક બંને.  આખું નાટક એક કલાકનું જ. પણ વ્યાપારી ધોરણે એ ભજવાયું અને અમદાવાદના પ્રેક્ષકો દ્વારા ઝિલાયું એ તો નાટક પત્યા બાદ તેમણે ઊભા થઈને સતત એકદોઢ મિનિટ સુધી પાડેલી તાળીઓથી જ ખ્યાલ આવે. 

By Harsh Thakor*   On March 25, 1925, Shura—Alexander Pavlovich Chekalin—was born. A young partisan scout during the Great Patriotic War, he posthumously became a Hero of the Soviet Union. Captured, tortured, and hanged for his resistance activities in Tula Oblast near Moscow, Chekalin’s martyrdom remains one of the most soul-stirring stories of youth in the history of liberation struggles.  

By Bharat Dogra Gehlaur panchayat with its several hamlets, located in Gaya district of Bihar, came into limelight following the success of its famous ‘mountain man’ Dashrath Manjhi in carving out a path in the middle of mountains. After his death a memorial and gates were created by the government in his memory. An annual event is organized on his death anniversary.

By Bharat Dogra  The SBI Foundation, a corporate social responsibility subsidiary of the State Bank of India, has a very well-considered Program called Sammaan which seeks to honor freedom fighters and those engaged in various valiant and noble efforts in more recent times by promoting development initiatives in their native places. It was also very thoughtful of the Sammaan program to take this initiative recently to the village of the famous ‘Mountain Man’ Dashrath Manjhi who has inspired many, many people by opening up a path in the middle of massive mountains. 

By Vijay Prashad  In the past two decades, the external debt of developing countries has quadrupled to $11.4 trillion (2023). It is important to understand that this money owed to foreign creditors is equivalent to 99% of the export earnings of the developing countries. This means that almost every dollar earned by the export of goods and services is a dollar owed to a foreign bank or bond holder. Countries of the Global South, therefore, are merely selling their goods and services to pay off debts incurred for development projects, collapsed commodity prices, public deficits, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the inflation due to the Ukraine war. Half the world’s population (3.3 billion) lives in countries that allocate more of their budget to pay off the interest on debt than to pay for either education or health services. On the African continent, of the fifty-four countries, thirty-four spend more on debt servicing than on public healthcare. Debt looms over the Global South like a ...

By Bharat Dogra  Consider these three facts, also try to imagine the real life situations based on these: At the age of 26 a youth from the poorest landless community took upon himself the impossible looking task of breaking a huge mountain to the extent of carving out a life-saving path that thousands of villagers needed urgently. He toiled tirelessly for 22 years, yes 22 (1960-82), no less, and finally succeeded in his objective.

By Sudhansu R Das  Religious thought polluters are the biggest menace to the economy, society and culture of India. Though polluters work silently with covert intention to mislead people to satisfy their lust for power, pleasure and comfort; religion is often misused world over to mislead a mass of illiterate and backward people.  The government needs to have a step by step approach to end the influence of the thought polluters over tender minds before more communal and ethnic strife disrupts economic, social and cultural equilibrium of the country.

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak  Midlife crisis can manifest itself in different forms. It can take be biological, social, emotional, and financial turmoil. Historically, in collectivist societies across the globe, these crises remained largely invisible because success, failure, happiness, sorrow, scarcity, and abundance were shared experiences within the community. The impact of an individual's midlife crisis was minimal, as personal struggles were absorbed into the collective support system.

By Harsh Thakor*  A controversial debate has emerged in the revolutionary camp regarding the Communist Party of India (Marxist)'s categorization of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Many Communists criticize the CPM’s reluctance to label the BJP as a fascist party and India as a fascist state. Various factors must be considered to arrive at an accurate assessment. Understanding the original meaning and historical development of fascism is essential, as well as analyzing how it manifests in the present global and national context.

By A Representative  More than 2,600 activists, academics, lawyers, journalists, artists, and citizens across India have written to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) expressing concern over a March 17, 2025, revisional order (No. 1449/2024) by the Allahabad High Court in a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The collective, led by the coalition Feminists for Judicial Accountability, criticized the order as emblematic of institutionalized misogyny and called for systemic reforms to ensure gender-sensitive judicial processes.  

By A Representative   The Supreme Court is set to hear the case Wildlife First and Ors. vs Union of India and Ors. (WP 109/2008) on April 2nd, which challenges the constitutionality of the Forest Rights Act, 2006 (FRA). The outcome may have significant implications for forest-dwelling communities across India.

- પ્રો. હેમંતકુમાર શાહ   આજકાલ સૌની નજર બીજી એપ્રિલ પર છે. કારણ કે એ દિવસે અમેરિકા ભારતની નિકાસ પર વધુ આયાત જકાત નાખશે એવી ધારણા છે.  ડોનાલ્ડ ટ્રમ્પની દલીલ એ છે કે ભારત અમેરિકાની ચીજો પર સરેરાશ ૧૨.૫ ટકા આયાત જકાત નાખે છે અને અમેરિકા તો ભારતની ચીજો પર સરેરાશ માત્ર ૨.૨ ટકા જ આયાત જકાત નાખે છે. એટલે અમેરિકાને ભારત સાથેના વેપારમાં વરસેદહાડે ૪૫૬૦ કરોડ ડોલરની ખોટ જાય છે. 

By Ram Puniyani  The V-Dem observations about India, as reported in The Hindu , highlight that “almost all components of democracy were getting worse in more countries than they were getting better.” The report specifically pointed to freedom of expression, clean elections, and freedom of association/civil society as the three most affected components in autocratizing countries. This aptly summarizes the current ground reality in India. To make matters worse, India is witnessing some of the harshest treatment of its minorities. The RSS-BJP combine has increasingly used Hindu festivals and congregations as tools to intimidate minorities. This pattern was evident in the recent Ram Navami celebrations, Holi festivities, and the Kumbh congregation.

By Syed Ali Mujtaba*  A private school in Shimla has canceled its planned Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations following threats from a Hindutva group. An organization called ‘Dev Bhoomi Sangarsh Samiti’ threatened to "gherao" the school and take legal action if the decision to celebrate the Eid festival was not withdrawn. Other religious outfits and individuals also expressed concern on social media.

By A Representative   Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM), a human rights group, has written to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) seeking urgent help for villagers in East Sahebganj (Netaji Bajar Part), Coochbehar, West Bengal. The village, located on the India-Bangladesh border, is surrounded by barbed wire fencing, and the Border Security Force (BSF) strictly controls movement in and out.  

By Bharat Dogra   When a man agrees to walk for 300 km to take the message of water conservation to many villages, this is great. However when a rural woman decides to do so, this is an even bigger decision and an even bigger achievement because the problems a woman must overcome to be able to complete such a task are much bigger.

By Bharat Dogra  India has a great tradition of organizing foot marches, including some which become historically very important, the most obvious example being the Dandi Salt March under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi which is a very important chapter in the freedom movement of India.

By Ram Puniyani  Since the demolition of the Babri Mosque by the RSS Combine in 1992, a particular version of history, focusing on kings and their religions, is being selectively imposed on the collective social consciousness. Taking this further, communal forces are now linking history with nationalism. Interestingly, the history of the era of kingdoms is being tied to nationalism, ignoring the fact that the nation-state is a modern concept, and the idea of India emerged parallel to the struggle against colonial powers.

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat  India is a unique country where history is often learned through poets, storytellers, and, of course, politicians influenced by WhatsApp's narrative builders. These politicians often speak from behind the agendas set by their narrative framers. The aim of such "humor" is to humiliate opponents, energize their own cadre, and appear more "secular" or "nationalist," depending on their constituencies.

By Bharat Dogra  Recently when I was speaking to a group of socially active women from remote villages in Niwari district (Madhya Pradesh) regarding the need for a campaign to reduce consumption of liquor and in fact all intoxicants, one of the women got up to say—We are fully supportive for such a campaign which is really needed, but in addition you should also include in this campaign the urgency of checking mobile phone gambling which is really ruining the life of our children.

By A Representative  The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has called for a review of U.S. arms sales to India, sanctions on India’s intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), and legislation to counter transnational repression by governments like India against individuals in the United States.  

By A Representative  Prominent ecologist and UN environmental negotiator Dr. S Faizi has formally urged the UNFCCC Loss and Damage Fund to allocate compensation for the catastrophic floods and landslides that devastated Wayanad, Kerala, in July 2024. In a letter addressed to Dr. Ibrahim Cheikh Diong, Executive Director of the Fund, Faizi highlighted the climate crisis as the primary cause of the disaster, which claimed 359 lives, left 95 permanently disabled, and caused severe injuries to 378 others.   The Kerala government estimates recovery and reconstruction costs at Rs 22,190 million (approx. $258 million), excluding compensation for loss of life, livelihoods, and agricultural damage. Faizi argues the total losses exceed Rs 50,000 million ($581 million), a burden unsustainable for the state without international support. Citing a World Weather Attribution study linking the disaster to climate change, he emphasized Wayanad’s "carbon-negative" status, noting its minimal...

By A Representative  The National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) has held a press conference at the Press Club of India, New Delhi, strongly condemning recent regressive and patriarchal judgments by various High Courts that undermine women’s and children’s rights. The organization expressed deep distress over rulings that trivialize sexual violence, impose marriage as a "solution" for crimes, and blatantly disregard laws like the POCSO Act.  

By A Representative   The People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has strongly condemned the targeting of comedian Kunal Kamra and the vandalism at The Habitat, Mumbai, allegedly carried out by members of the Shiv Sena (Shinde faction). Kamra's satirical show, "Naya Bharat," which critiqued political leadership, went viral on social media after being recorded at The Habitat studio on March 23, 2025.

By A Representative  The Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA), a movement fighting for the rights of sanitation workers, held a powerful protest at Jantar Mantar today, demanding an end to manual scavenging and the rising deaths of sewer and septic tank workers.  

By Sudhansu R Das  In spite of all the potential to become one of the prosperous states in India, Odisha is limping amid poverty, backwardness and unemployment. Alarming rise in atmospheric temperature, increase in crime rate, migration of Odias to outside states for livelihood, acute farm labor shortage,  crop diversity loss, wanton destruction of water bodies and growing intellectual apathy to economic, social and cultural problems hit the state hard.

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat  Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Mr. MK Stalin's initiative against the delimitation 'threat' needs to be taken seriously by all who cherish the idea of a strong and united India. There is no doubt that the representation of people should be based on the population of constituencies. 

By Bharat Dogra  As the water-crisis spreads to many areas, it is important to have an understanding of the crisis that encourages participative, people-centered solutions. Without such an understanding solutions that are imposed from above may end up causing more problems instead of resolving the existing ones. This is certainly true of a region like Bundelkhand in Central India which has been frequently in news due to water scarcity faced by people. However leaving aside special drought years, the problem here is often not so much of overall less rainfall as it is of not being able to conserve rainwater or of not managing the available water properly. 

By Nava Thakuria*  Indications from Bangladesh suggest that the country may hold national elections by the end of this year—provided major political parties agree to minimal reforms in administrative, financial, and electoral institutions. The reforms would come with assurances that the winning representatives in the Jatiya Sangsad (National Assembly/Parliament) will continue the reform process in the South Asian nation.   Professor Muhammad Yunus, who assumed leadership of an interim government in Dhaka after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted by a student-led mass movement in July-August 2024, has repeatedly emphasized the need for sweeping reforms.

By A Representative  A coalition of civil society organisations has intensified its efforts to stall the passage of the Disaster Management (Amendment) Bill, 2024, by appealing directly to members of the Rajya Sabha. Following extensive consultations with stakeholders, the organisations have sent letters to all Upper House members, imploring them to either reject the Bill or refer it to a Select Parliamentary Committee for thorough re-evaluation. The Bill, already passed by the Lok Sabha last year, is anticipated to be tabled in the current Rajya Sabha session.

By A Representative  The People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has strongly condemned the "egregious actions" of the Punjab Police, allegedly under the direction of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, against peacefully protesting farmers at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders on March 19, 2025. In a statement released today by its General Secretary, Dr. V. Suresh, the PUCL described the police action, involving arrests and the destruction of protest sites, as a "shameful assault on democratic rights and a betrayal of the agrarian community."

By Harsh Thakor  On March 23, the Revolutionary Students Front (Inquilabi Chatra Morcha) organized a meeting at Azad Park in Allahabad -- now renamed Prayagraj -- to commemorate the martyrdom of Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, and Rajguru.

By A Representative  In a strongly worded appeal addressed to the Chairperson and Members of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL), renowned power and climate policy analyst, Shankar Sharma, has urged the central government to reject wildlife clearance for the proposed 2,000 MW Pumped Storage Project (PSP) in the ecologically sensitive Sharavathi river valley of Karnataka.

By Harsh Thakor*  This article is a rejoinder to A Note on Slogans of “Left Unity,” “Unity of the Communist Revolutionaries” and “Mass Line” by Umair Ahmed, published on the Nazariya blog .

By A Representative   The People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has lodged a formal complaint with the Chief Justice of India, urging the Supreme Court to initiate suo-moto contempt proceedings against the police and municipal authorities in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The complaint alleges that these officials have engaged in unlawful demolitions and custodial violence, in direct violation of a Supreme Court order issued in November 2024.

By Vikas Meshram*  Even before the end of March, several parts of India are experiencing a heatwave. On March 16, Odisha recorded a temperature of 43°C, while Jharsuguda touched 42°C. In more than half a dozen locations across the country, temperatures exceeded 40°C. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has confirmed that such unusual March heatwaves were unprecedented. Notably, 2024 was recorded as the hottest year in human history. March 2023 was the warmest March on record, and March 2024 surpassed that record. Similarly, February 2024 broke the record of the previous February for the highest temperature. Now, indications suggest that March 2025 might follow the same trend.

By Divesh Ranjan, Amit Kumar Poonia,  Sandeep Pandey* The ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict has resulted in nearly $300 billion in expenditures, over 150,000 lives lost, and the displacement of more than 10 million people, as reported by The Washington Post. While the war is framed around a simple 'YES' or 'NO' to Ukraine’s NATO membership, a deeper analysis suggests that the conflict is a strategic battle over maintaining global hegemon status and somewhere for mineral resources, particularly between the United States and Russia. It is also to undermine the silent rise of China's threat against USA's unipolar hegemony by stopping the subsequent bandwagoning of countries in Asia and Africa. 

By Bharat Dogra  In a county where most villagers have very small farms, a significant way of reducing poverty can be to convert a part of these farms into small orchards and vegetable gardens that can yield higher income and improve nutrition, while continuing farming of staple food on the remaining land as before. 

By Harasankar Adhikari  On February 20, 2025, the Madhyamik (Secondary) Examination in West Bengal concluded without major incidents. However, an event on the final day drew widespread attention. Some students were seen tearing pages from their textbooks outside an examination center, celebrating the end of their exams. This act was perceived by some observers as a symbolic rejection of the current education system, suggesting a deeper dissatisfaction among students. Although it may be considered an isolated incident, it raises concerns about the broader state of education and its implications for society.

By A Representative  As India approaches the five-year anniversary of its nationwide lockdown imposed on March 25, 2020, the United Health Organization (UHO) is inviting the public to engage in a thought-provoking exercise. The lockdown, introduced as a response to the COVID-19 emergency, was touted as a scientific measure to control the pandemic's spread. Five years on, the UHO seeks to evaluate how various aspects of the COVID-19 response align with data and scientific evidence.

By Harsh Thakor*  Born on March 18, 1948, Eknath Dhondu Solkar, arguably the greatest forward short-leg fielder in cricket history, sadly passed away on June 26, 2005, at the age of 57, due to a heart attack. He had been battling diabetes and other ailments for some time. His name remains an enduring star in the hearts of cricket fans.  Solkar was a pivotal figure in Indian cricket's renaissance, playing a crucial role in the historic series victories in the West Indies and England in 1971.

By A Representative  The National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) has issued a strong condemnation of the recent judgment by Justice Ram Manohar Narayan Mishra of the Allahabad High Court. The judgment, dated March 19, ruled that "grabbing the breast of a girl and breaking her pant string is not an attempt to rape, but an attempt to sexually molest."  

By Bharat Dogra  Goats are generally at the margin of rural development efforts, but thanks to a well-planned initiative in Shivpuri district of Madhya Pradesh, efforts related to better care of goats and improved livelihoods based on these have progressed in very creative and useful ways, including progress of an endearing concept of giving goat kids (babies) a more protective childhood in the form of memna nursery (memna is the local word for goat babies or kids).

- राम पुनियानी   वी-डेम  इंस्टिट्यूट की भारत के संबंध में रपट, जो द हिंदू में प्रकाशित की गई है, में कहा गया है कि "यह रेखांकित करते हुए कि लोकतंत्र के लगभग सभी घटकों की स्थिति जितने देशों में सुधर रही है, उससे अधिक देशों में बिगड़ रही है, रपट में विशेष तौर पर यह जिक्र किया गया है कि अभिव्यक्ति की स्वतंत्रता, निष्पक्ष चुनाव और संगठित होने व नागरिक समाज की आजादी पर निरंकुशता की ओर बढ़ते देशों में सबसे गंभीर दुष्प्रभाव पड़ा है."  

- એક પ્રતિનિધિ ગુજરાત રાજ્ય માહિતી આયોગના 2023-24ના અહેવાલમાં રાજ્યના ત્રણ મુખ્ય વિભાગો—ગૃહ, મિસેલુ અને શહેરી વિકાસ વિભાગોની કામગીરી વિશે ગંભીર અવલોકન કરવામાં આવ્યું છે. કુલ મળેલી 1,31,875 અરજીઓમાંથી 69.42% અરજીઓ માત્ર આ ત્રણ વિભાગો સામે નોંધાવામાં આવી છે, જે સૂચવે છે કે આ વિભાગોમાં માહિતીની પારદર્શિતા અને યોગ્ય પ્રવાહમાં ગંભીર ખામી જોવા મળી રહી છે. વધુમાં, માહિતીના અધિકાર હેઠળ મળતી અરજીઓમાં અગાઉના વર્ષની સરખામણીમાં 10,385નો વધારો નોંધાયો છે, જે એ દિશામાં સંકેત આપે છે કે માહિતી સરળતાથી મળતી નથી અને નાગરિકો સંપૂર્ણ માહિતી મેળવવા વધુ પ્રયત્નશીલ બન્યા છે. 

By Harsh Thakor  ‘He Who Defied Death – A Tribute to the Life and Times of Professor Saibaba’ is a testimony that the state did not incarcerate Saibaba merely to suppress his actions, but to isolate him from the buoyant world of struggle that was erupting amidst adversity. This book comprises a series of tributes to the late Professor Saibaba. Reflections on his martyrdom have come from a broad spectrum of democratic quarters and individuals in our society. It stands as evidence that Saibaba’s death broke the silence and resurrected the vitality of democratic aspirations.

By A Representative   The Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM) has submitted a formal complaint to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) regarding an alleged incident of human rights violation involving personnel of the Border Security Force (BSF). The complaint highlights the physical assault, communal bias, and threats faced by Rustam Sahaji, a 35-year-old resident of Hakimpur village in North 24 Parganas, West Bengal.

By A Representative  As the inaugural UN World Day for Glaciers arrives on March 21, Suhora Technologies, a prominent Indian Earth observation and analytics company specializing in downstream space analytics, has brought attention to a pressing issue—alarming expansion trends in some glacial lakes within the Himalayan region. This phenomenon poses increasing risks to surrounding communities.

- राज कुमार सिन्हा*  गर्मी की आहट शुरू होते ही पीने के पानी का संकट शुरू हो जाता है। प्रशासनिक अमला भी लोगों को पानी की दिक्कत न हो इसके लिए प्रयास करना शुरू कर देता है। परन्तु पानी बचाने से लेकर उसके संरक्षण की बात अक्सर सरकार और समाज के बीच से गायब ही रहता है। पृथ्वी पर 97 प्रतिशत भाग पानी है जिसमें से केवल 2.5 प्रतिशत से लेकर 2.75 प्रतिशत पानी पीने योग्य है। भारत पहली बार 2011 में पानी की कमी वाले देशों की सूची में शामिल हुआ था। यूनिसेफ द्वारा 18 मार्च 2021 की जारी रपट के अनुसार भारत में 9.14 बच्चे गंभीर जल संकट का सामना कर रहे हैं।