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BHOPAL: In the midst of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan launching a blistering attack on opposition by saying that 'shame on those who are shedding tears for terrorists', doubts have been expressed about the circumstances in which 8 alleged terrorists escaped from the prison and also about the genuineness of the encounter in which all the 8 were killed.

BHOPAL: A series of communal incidents in Madhya Pradesh has raised the question about the security of Muslims. In all these incidents Muslims were the main targets.

Traditionally, byelections have mostly gone in favour of the ruling party in Tamil Nadu but the November 19 byelections for three seats in the State Assembly, with AIADMK Chief Minister Jayalalithaa still in hospital, have raised undue hopes for rival DMK to make crucial gains.

The summit declaration made by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 15 is taking concrete shape in the energy sector with every passing day and that is a strong indication of the India-Russia Energy bridge which both the leaders mentioned during the summit for bolstering energy security of India in the coming years. ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas arm of the ONGC, has just completed the acquisition of additional eleven per cent equity stake in Russia’s Vankor oil fields taking its total stake to 26 per cent. The company signed a deal with the Rosneft Oil Company of Russia on October 28 for this latest acquisition at a cost of US$ 930 million.OVL which had previously bought 15 per cent stake in Vankor from Rosneft for US$1.288 billion, will get 7.3 million tones of oil equivalent from this total of 26 per cent stake. The Vankor oil fields are in East Siberia.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Will AICC vice-president, Rahul Gandhi, assert his authority to have his action plan for the Congress in Kerala implemented? That is the question uppermost in the minds of Congress cadres and leaders in the State.

The Dalai Lame is free to go anywhere, says the BJP, on the eve of his visit to Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh.

A Tata may disagree, today’s Rs. 7,00,000-crore Tata business empire, directly employing around 6,50,000 people, was largely built and expanded by non-Tata manager-entrepreneurs such as Sumant Moolgaokar (TELCO), Darbari Seth (Tata Chemicals and Tata Beverages), Xerxes Desai (Titan Industries), Subramaniam Ramadorai (TCS), Ajit Kerkar (Indian Hotels) and Russi Mody (Tata Steel). Interestingly, they all worked with JRD Tata, who accorded them full freedom and authority to run their enterprises as their own companies. Their entrepreneurship talents were spotted early by JRD.

Organizing investment summit has become a regular programme to woo investors. It started with Vibrant Gujarat. It spilled over to half a dozen states to project their states as attractive investment destinations. West Bengal organized two investment summits and the third one is on the way in January 2017.

The infighting in the Samajwadi Party with each faction pulling its way and party patriarch, Mulayam Singh Yadav changing his decisions each day, indicates that the party is deeply divided. In this situation, the SP is bound to get big jolt in the next year’s assembly election in Uttar Pradesh.

The NDA Government’s regional connectivity scheme (RCS) under which airline tickets will cost a maximum of Rs 2500 for an hour’s flight in undeveloped or underdeveloped areas of the country has received a big push by foreign airlines. But, as expected, India’s own domestic private sector carriers are out to oppose the laudable scheme for their own selfish motive. It is time the Government takes a decisive step to rein in the greedy and unresponsive airlines who refuse to think beyond themselves.