Blogs

India’s 16th Finance Commission and Budget 2026 signal a decisive shift in how the country funds disaster management—moving away from post-crisis relief towards data-driven prevention, AI-enabled risk intelligence, and climate-resilient development. For decades, disaster management in India followed a familiar script: calamity strikes, relief is mobilised, compensation is disbursed, and attention soon shifts elsewhere. That…

We live in a world inhabited by people with names like Anaya, Alaya, Ahaana, Aarav, Vivaan, Revaan, Rian and Saanvi, to name just a few. There is a distinct phonetic universe that they reside in, and it is one that bears little relationship with the past. One thing that jumps out about how names have…

Deal with Trump signals fundamental shift in India’s trade philosophy from ‘won’t buy’ to ‘will sell’ America matters, for it’s where the most money is. This year, Americans will buy clothes worth $370bn – more than the value of all cars sold in India. As of 2023, India’s share of this ginormous apparel market was…

Prince Rahul Gandhi has, as usual, begun leveling accusations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, this time by citing a reference from an unpublished book by former Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Naravane. Pointing out the government’s mistakes is undoubtedly the duty of an opposition leader. However, under the pretext of performing this duty, Rahul…

In February, love flows like a bubbly river that sings and dances its way to be one with the infinite ocean. It keeps moving despite the rocks, fallen trees and the steeps to meet its ultimate destiny. It loses itself to be unfathomable. Every drop of it echoes the vastness of the great waters. Such…

India is in an AI surge moment, and this time it is not just hype. The India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi (16–20 February 2026) has already crossed 35,000 registrations, with participation expected from more than 100 countries. Official messaging frames it as the largest of the global AI summits held so far. The…

When I first heard the news, my reaction was muted. Of course, I felt gratitude. Pride, even. But I did not yet grasp the scale of it. However, I did not understand, emotionally, what this moment would become. That specific understanding arrived later, and it arrived through people. In the days that followed the Padmi…

By Anmol Saxena Human life is an interplay of forces. Some lift us up, while others weigh us down. Across cultures and centuries, philosophers, mystics, and saints have tried to define these forces. They use different terms: virtues and vices, gunas and vikaars, light and shadow, ascent and descent. Sant Shyam Lal Saxena, Babuji Maharaj,…

Incredibly so, many American actors have trooped out of Trump’s America for greener pastures. What is as unbelievable is that all of them have settled in Europe. George Clooney too with his wife, Amal, and seven-year-old twins. The star, a vocal critic of President Trump, said he would rather not let the juniors grow up…

On February 12, Bangladesh will hold a parliamentary election alongside a referendum. The referendum asks voters to approve the so-called July Charter, a framework that would authorise the next parliament to amend the Constitution and recalibrate key institutional arrangements. Although old allies, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Jamaat-e-Islami, are contesting the election in…