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THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Two gubernatorial snubs in two consecutive days. That has been the unenviable lot of the Pinarayi Vijayan-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) Government ruling the State.

KOLKATA: In recent times, no ruling party in Bengal ever faced the Panchayat elections as confidently as the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in 2018, with only hours to go for the polls.

The proverb all’s well that ends well prevailed at Karachi’s Hakeem Saeed ground in Gulshan-e-Iqbal when at long last workers of the two parties, Tehreek-e-Insaf and Pakistan People’s Party, buried the hatchet on the eve of organising a jalsa on the 11th anniversary of Black Day on 12 May. Imran Khan’s party gave up the insistence on the celebration at the Hakeem Saeed ground and chose another venue. It is clear that the conflict between the two parties was over a petty issue.

The dome of the Supreme Court building evokes a certain symbolism that conjures up a larger meaning to all Indians, lending the hallowed precincts of the last resort of justice an overbearing air of solemnity and authority. But whatever has happened under the dome in the past one week must make all Indians squirm. History will perhaps record the seven days as the darkest in the annals of the highest court of the land.

The dirtiest-ever poll campaigning in Karnataka has come to a grinding halt. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP President Amit Shah came to personal levels, calling Congress President Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi names. Corruption charges, substantiated or unsubstantiated, were hurled at the Congress and its leaders. Even calm and composed former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had to say that no PM had stooped so low as Modi. Rahul and Congress leaders retaliated ferociously but could not match torrent of abuses hurled at them by PM and Shah.

Every word they speak is a lie, including the ‘and’ and ‘the’ in the sentence. That is the politician for you. Not to be trusted, or believed. But when the army chief says ‘azaadi’ is beyond the pale of the Kashmiri youth, that’s the end of any wish for ‘autonomy’, too. The message was also for the separatists, and the politicians of legitimate political outfits such as the National Conference and the PDP.

Come 21-26 May 2018, representatives from all over the world will gather at Geneva for the annual World Health Assembly meet. As one of the prominent members of the World Health Organization (WHO), India shares a pivotal role in setting the global health agenda. WHO’s work has never been more important to address serious and evolving international health threats. It is only a matter of time before there is another global influenza pandemic to match the devastating outbreak of 1918,and as recent outbreaks of Ebola and Zika have shown, new and deadly diseases can emerge at any time, without any warning.

India is an oil guzzling nation. It is the third biggest oil consuming country in the world. India is also an oil import dependent country. Over 85 percent of crude oil requirement is met by imports. Resultantly, any hike in global crude oil prices should have a cascading effect on its economy and its balance of payment situation.

Since childhood we have been hearing ‘Health is wealth’. No wonder only a healthy person can work and contribute for her/his personal, family and society’s development. It is, therefore, important that our population has sound mind and fit body. For this we need clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, good nutritious food to eat, proper means for disposal, a reasonable house to live, opportunities for education and so on. This is a task the state must ensure for all citizens.

Thanks to its strong economic fundamentals, India has finally earned the ‘the fastest growing economy’ of the world tag in spite of its being home to the largest number of illiterates and poor of the world, and the recent economic policy experiments and misadventures. It is now time to prepare for the uncertainties and risks lying ahead, as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) points out in its latest Regional Economic Outlook for Asia and the Pacific.