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The recently held campaigners meet of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate organisation, the ICAN (International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons), at Geneva has appealed to the world leaders to have a wake up call of the threat the nuclear weapons pose today. Their very presence is a grave danger to the existence of life on earth. Studies done in this regard have shown that even a limited nuclear exchange between India and Pakistan using 100 Hiroshima sized nuclear bombs would put two billion people at risk. But a larger nuclear exchange between US and Russia could lead to the extinction of all life forms from earth. The contention that nuclear weapons serve as deterrence is totally unfounded. Peace cannot be sustained on the basis of fear; peace is long lasting if it is based on mutual trust. Despite the presence of nuclear weapons and threat of their use, peace is a far cry and there are conflicts going on in several parts of the world. These low level skirmishes could at any time escalate Into larger conflicts, which could in turn develop into a nuclear exchange.

A perpetual border settlement between India and China is untenable. Then, why not use economic engagement to soothe the relation. Against the backdrop of US trade war against China, Prime Minister Modi’s reciprocation to Beijing’s urge for amelioration of ties is a timely step for his Act East policy, which has been shadowed by China’s BRI (Belt and Road initiative). India has declined to be party to BRI.

The war over judges continues unabated. If the battle lines are drawn, the canvas of the battleground is widening by the day. Now, it has extended to appointments of judges in the Supreme Court. While one judge has been appointed with acceptance from both the Congress and BJP, there is strife over the non-appointment of another judge, the Malayalee Justice KM Joseph.

To wake up to the headline ‘Tragedy in Kushinagar’ doesn’t give anybody ‘Kushi’. Add to that the number ‘13’ and ‘superstition’ drops anchor. Last heard, ‘13’ was still an unlucky number. And 13 children died in Kushinagar when their school bus was blown off the tracks by a rushing train at an unmanned level crossing in Uttar Pradesh Thursday morning. Happiness fled Kushinagar. Such an unhappy name for a town in grief.

The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) has made far-reaching recommendations for the creation of a new ‘BIMSTEC’ by strengthening infrastructure linkages, deepening regional transport connectivity, facilitating cross-border trade, investment and tourism, protecting the environment and promoting sustainable use of shared natural resources in the BIMSTEC economies.

Poetry on the Picket Line might sound a little unlikely, but it works. It's a squad of writers prepared to turn up on picket lines and read poetry — something a little different and, usually, it goes down pretty well. It started off by accident a few years ago during the dispute at the National Gallery during the campaign against privatisation heavily supported by the PCS union culture group, whose members were taking action to protect their jobs, terms and conditions.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a sea of swirling plastic waste in the middle of the Pacific, twice the size of Texas and thrice that of France, is difficult to remove. Similarly, human garbage, trash like self-styled ‘god-man’ Asaram Bapu, is hard to get rid of. But April 25, 2018, Judgement Day, this Bapu of all things base in Man and worse in ‘god-man’, who has lakhs dancing to his tune, stood convicted for rape. He was sentenced to life in jail until death, the quantum of sentence not quite the quantum of solace he and his supporters expected.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China’s President in perpetuity Xi Jinping summit parleys sans aide but with interpreters in Wuhan on April 27-28 to take advantage of their mutual chemistry in cementing bilateral relations have not come a day too soon. Soon after Modi’s ascension to the premiership in 2014 he made no bones about his globe-trotting intentions to befriend as many nations as possible during his tenure, though many a critic poured scorn and bile at cultivating friendship across the board in the universe and at enormous expense. In his initial days, Modi showed exceptional warmth to Xi and ensured that the first visit of the Chinese leader to India a great success by taking him to his own state Gujarat to hold a sort of retreat talk where both them disported themselves on a swing at the park on the Sabarmati’s riverfront. The world saw the amazing bonhomie of the leaders of the two giant nations of Asia, which captured the imagination of more than a billion people in their respective country by promising to usher in the pride and heritage of their country’s studded history and glory of the bygone centuries.

The Communist Party of India’s four day 23rd Congress at Kollam in Kerala beginning April 26, has got a tough task in preparing the Party to be a prominent participant in the current battle of the opposition parties against the NDA government at the centre as also the saffron forces. The Party has been following the right political strategy among the left parties but the organisational weakness has hampered the Party in making the commensurate impact on the national politics. The CPI has been talking of broadbased unity of the anti-BJP forces including the Congress since the installation of the Narendra Modi Government at the centre in May 2014. In the last four years, the Party has been consistent in making efforts to rally the anti-BJP forces under one umbrella. The CPI(M) leadership was opposed to any understanding with the Congress earlier in the anti-BJP battle but now after the 22nd Congress of the Party , the CPI(M) has come near the CPI position and that has facilitated the process of building a solid broadbased opposition unity against the BJP in the coming state assembly as also the Lok Sabha elections in 2019.

LUCKNOW: BJP is now in the election mode for 2019 Lok Sabha polls. As a part of damage control after the humiliating defeat in two by-elections for Lok Sabha seats Gorakhpur and Phulpur, BJP national president Amit Shah visited the state capital and held discussions with the chief minister and senior ministers as well as senior party leaders.