Blogs

This week, we are tracking:  Islamic Nato or paper tiger: Can the Mecca pact survive its Iran test? Chandra says goodbye: Noel era begins at Tatas High in the sky: Why drug testing pilots is complicated What’s in a name? On the China border, quite a lot Mecca, Munir and missiles: Can Pakistan defend Saudi…

When Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru rose to deliver his Independence Day speech in 1957, a decade after India won freedom from the British Empire, he began with two lines by an anonymous poet:   Is tarah tay ki hain humne manzilein, Gir pade, gir kar uthe, uth kar chale.   These two lines perhaps captured not only the long…

Some I-Day musings Satrajit, play it back to Bachi, tell her I have made some tweaks, and that I can’t understand the portion highlighted… Whattt? It’s been 79 years already? Seems like yesterday only. We keep getting reminders of how we stood up against the mighty British ruler.  1857. We’ve had ‘A Million Mutinies (by)…

Businesses and governments like extra charges. But surprise charges are not good for customers or citizens People should live within their means. Governments should do the same. Every year, the Centre and state governments make a Budget. They decide how much money they will collect and how much they will spend. But what is the…

India and China have a long-running disagreement over their border, especially Arunachal Pradesh. India says Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India, while China claims parts of the state as its own.Recently, India officially used Indian names for 27 places in Arunachal. This came after China repeatedly gave these places Chinese names. India’s message…

Hello and welcome to the 102nd edition of The Weekly Vine. All writers are the sum total of the writers they read. So, when you read me, you read a little Kafka, a little Forsyth, a little Le Carré, a little Wodehouse, a little Rushdie, a little Shobhaa De and a little Jug Suraiya. That’s…

In 2015 I was 43 years old and my blood work said I was generally fine. Total cholesterol: 190 mg/dL LDL cholesterol: 119 mg/dL HDL cholesterol: 40 mg/dL Triglycerides: 237 mg/dL (above the 150 threshold, which is why I was advised to improve my diet) HbA1c: 5.9% (pre-diabetic, but the aforementioned diet would take care…

Tackling a govt-designed obstacle course called TDS If you’re puffing and panting and out of breath, it’s possible you’ve had to tackle the govt obstacle course called TDS, or Tax Deducted at Source, which is the twist in the tale of Income Tax. The modern tax system was introduced in 1799 Britain by Prime Minister…

Selling cars and bikes with multi-year covers is not the right way to ensure 100% vehicle insurance About 60% of vehicles in India are uninsured. This means if one of them hits you, your chances of getting compensation are dim. It’s a sobering thought, but not shocking, because this was the case in 2012, in…

Selling cars and bikes with insurance for many years is not the right way to make sure everyone has vehicle insurance About 60% of vehicles in India do not have insurance. This means that if one of these vehicles hits you, it may be difficult for you to get compensation. This is worrying, but not…