In this issue

Gujarat’s battle lines The BJP juggernaut with its propaganda aboutthe Gujarat model of development has been brought up short by new players in the State’s electoral battle in 2017.

CONTROVERSY Targeting medieval Muslim rulers.

REMINISCENCES Melanmai Ponnusamy: The writer who saw the world through his village.

Whose Development Is It Anyway?

The Assembly elections have put under intense scrutiny Narendra Modi’s Gujarat model of development which is touted as worthy of replication throughout the country. Audit reports of the CAG provide ample evidence of it being inefficient, corrupt and not beneficial to the common people.

10+ mins

Caste On Top

Caste has always been important in Gujarat’s electoral politics. Now, with several social groups speaking up for their rights and against perceived injustices, caste equations have infused uncertainty into the 2017 Assembly elections.

10+ mins

Sweet Promise

Narendra Modi’s promise of a sweet revolution and a blue revolution to enhance the incomes of farmers and fishermen in Gujarat is an unconvincing chimera, given the allegations of environmental violation by the Adani Group’s Mundra port project.

7 mins

Online Shopping Frenzy

The Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba creates a startling sales  record on this year’s Singles’ Day, tapping into the rising consumerism of the upper middle class. The surge may not yield the home market growth needed to rebalance the country’s growth.

6 mins

A Losing Game

With Reliance Payment Bank, a joint venture between Reliance Industries Limited and SBI, set to begin operations in December, there is widespread concern that the new venture will cause the downslide of the country’s largest public sector bank. 

8 mins

World Affairs Saudi Intrigues

The purge of the Saudi royal family, camouflaged as an anti-corruption drive, has torn apart its erstwhile unity, while the forced resignation of the Lebanese Prime Minister has reinforced the battle lines in the volatile neighbourhood.

8 mins

Show Of Solidarity

An international conference held in Yalta highlights how Crimea has been subjected to harsh sanctions by the West since it conducted a constitutionally valid referendum to secede from Ukraine in 2014.

8 mins

Ruined Infrastructure And A Refugee Crisis

Two months after two hurricanes hit Puerto Rico, the island nation continues to be plagued by collapsed infrastructure, widespread power failure and fears of a health crisis, even as residents leave en masse for the U.S. mainland.

5 mins

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