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All publicity is good publicity—so goes the old marketing slogan. Is that why Ramdev courts controversy by laughing at Covid-19 victims gasping for air on his Astha channel? His attack on allopathic medicine as “stupid science” and false claims that “10,000 doctors have died” after two shots of the vaccine are recent ones.

As Covid-19 courses through India’s veins, the environment has become toxic. If it’s BJP versus Congress at one level, and it’s Modi Government versus Big Tech at another. The rightwing says Twitter is modern-day East India Company while the Delhi Police has the microblogging site in its crosshairs. The Chhattisgarh Police is gunning for the BJP meanwhile, and both the police forces are investigating what’s called the “toolkit case” even as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to vitiate the atmosphere amidst a severe shortage of Covid-19 vaccines, which in turn has led to a Centre versus states confrontation.

These two years since the ModiII government was re-elected saw the consolidation of the process, with renewed vigour, put in motions even years ago, post-2014 elections, of the realisation of the RSS project of converting India into their conception of a rabidly intolerant, theocratic, fascistic “Hindu Rashtra”. This was its declared objective on its founding in 1925. Savarkar’s coinage of “Hindutva” as a political project having nothing in common with Hindu religion that followed soon and the ideological construct along with an organizational structure to achieve this project advanced by Golwalkar in 1939 laid the foundations for this assault on the Indian Constitution, which is the very anti-thesis of the RSS’s project. This destruction of the secular democratic Republican Constitution acquired a frenzied pace since the 2019 elections.

Following its $1.9 trillion Ovid-relief package, the Biden administration has further announced an infrastructure package of $2.3 trillion. But in contrast to the former which is to be spent within months, the latter is to be spent over an eight-year period. And this package in turn is to be followed by a “human infrastructure” package. All this adds up to a massive stimulus for the economy as well asa massive redistributive programme, especially since the infrastructure package is proposed to be substantially financed through an increase in corporate tax rates. Donald Trump had reduced corporate tax rates in the USA from 35 per cent to 21 per cent, and Biden wants to raise the tax rate to 28 per cent, not immediately of course but over a period of time.

Unemployment stemming from the spread of covid infection is the cruellest part of the pandemic, apart from the deaths and suffering caused by the disease. World wide millions of people have already been pushed into poverty because of the lack of incomes and employment.

New Delhi: Veteran Mary Kom and seasoned campaigner Sakshi chalked out hard fought wins over their rivals to move into the finals of their respective categories at the ASBC Asian Boxing Championships in Dubai.

New Delhi: The Indian Olympic Association on Thursday extended its full support to the IOC and Tokyo 2020 Organsing committee in conducting the Olympic Games successfully.

New Delhi: Defending champion Amit Panghal survived a scare before overpowering Kharkhuu Enkhmandakh 3-2 in the 52kg quarter-finals at the Asian Boxing Championships in Dubai.

President Joe Biden will hold a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 16 in Geneva, a face-to-face meeting between the leaders of the two countries with the largest nuclear arsenals.

And you better start swimming, Or you will sink like a stone, For the times they are a changin’

…The battle outside ragin’, Will soon shake your window, And rattle your walls.