Novartis Trying to Screw the Indian Consumers

Dear friends across India, In days, a multi-billion dollar Swiss pharma company may get the Indian Supreme Court to shut down our supply of affordable medicines. Only we can stop this outrage. Novartis is suing our government so it can squeeze more profits from the sick and needy. If Novartis wins, it will threaten Indiancompanies’ [...]

US Eases Visa Rules for Indians

Mar 22 2012 Indians who renew their US visas, valid or expired, within four years are likely to be exempted from personal interviews. “Beginning today, our consulates in India are introducing a new programme to streamline the visa renewal process. Over time, this programme has the potential to benefit hundreds of thousands of visa applicants [...]

Bombay’s History

Bombay is always standing on the threshold of creating history! 300 BC — Part of the Great Ashoka’s Empire. 1343 — Part of the Gujarat sultanate. 1431 – Haji Ali Dargah built one of the First Mosques of India. 1670 — First printing press in India was imported to Bombay by Parsi businessman Bhimji Parikh. [...]

Why Has the Indian Police Picked Up Mohammad Ahmad Kazmi?

The Indian police has recently arrested Syed Mohammad Ahmad Kazmi, a well-respected journalist. Kazmi has been a freelance journalist for almost 30 years, accredited by the Press Information Bureau. Based in Delhi, he has covered conflicts such as the Iran-Iraq war and the invasion of Iraq by US-led coalition forces for media outlets such as [...]

Shabana Azmi’s Interview

‘India lives in several centuries’ 2 December 2011 THE SATURDAY INTERVIEW She aims to be a perfectionist, whether as an actor, a social worker or a Member of Parliament. Shabana Azmi wears several hats and each appears to attract a feather or two. No one can dispute her prowess on the silver screen and stage [...]

Indian Muslims Require Quota to Get Their Plight Improved

Along the narrow lane known as Khadar Wallah, Muslims and low-caste Hindus have lived side by side for years, bound by poverty, if not religion. Yet recently, Muslims like Murtaza Mansuri have noticed a change. Their neighbors have become better off. Many of the Dalits, the low-caste Hindus once known as untouchables, have gotten government [...]

Poor Indians Being Recruited For Clinical Drug Trials

Few people in the slums of Ahmedabad, India, know more about the supply of human guinea pigs for clinical drug trials than Rajesh Nadia. When Indian firms working for pharmaceutical companies need test subjects, they often turn to Nadia, who has carved a small niche for himself as a recruiter in the international drug-testing industry. [...]

Punishment for Drunken Driving Proposed in Delhi

  To discourage drunk driving, the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has proposed stringent regulations which include a compulsory jail term for offenders.   In other words, it will now be a crime if drivers are found drunk while driving. Hundreds of ac­­c­id­ents related to alcohol-imp­aired driving, some of them fatal, occur each [...]

Why India No Longer Winning the Beauty Pageants?

“Why is India on a losing streak?  Aren’t we pretty anymore?” was the plaintive cry of the very presentable anchor of an English language news channel during a news discussion recently. She was not referring to cricket, quite obviously. Her concern was about the drought of Miss World and Miss Universe crowns for Indian women [...]

Excerpts of the Indian SC Decision on 2G Scam

Excerpts from the concluding paragraphs of the Supreme Court’s verdict cancelling 122 2G licences issued during A. Raja’s term as Minister of Communications and Information Technology. 69. …There is a fundamental flaw in the principle of first-come-first-served inasmuch as it involves an element of pure chance or accident. In matters involving award of contracts or grant [...]