US-hosted Climate Summit

ON Earth Day April 22, this year, US President Joe Biden hosted a summit of world leaders to address climate change, something he had promised he would do during his presidential campaign, to once again … Read more

India Gasps for Breath – Gross Mismanagement Again!

THE whole country is reeling under the brutal second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, breaking world records for daily cases. The health infrastructure has collapsed and vital medical supplies such as oxygen are nearing exhaustion. … Read more

The Second Covid-19 Wave and Modi Government’s Abdication of Responsibility

THE Covid-19 pandemic shows no sign of slowing down in the country, with figures touching 2,75,000 on April 18th. Hospitals are running out of beds, ICU capacity and even oxygen. Consequently, the death toll is … Read more

The West is Practicing Vaccine Apartheid At a Global Level

WITH an eighth of the world’s population, the rich countries – the US, Canada, UK and the EU – have received more than 50 per cent of the world’s vaccine doses. The US alone has … Read more

New Vehicle Scrappage Policy: Who Gains Most?

THE union budget presented in parliament on February 1, 2021 announced a long-promised and much-awaited vehicle scrappage policy. Subsequently, the minister for road transport and highways (MoRTH) provided some additional details, although the final policy … Read more

As US Loses its Edge, Game of Cyber Chicken Could Have Deadly Consequences

TWO major hacks – SolarWind and Microsoft Exchange server hacks – have affected a whole range of computer systems. Both are supply-chain hacks, meaning what appeared to be a routine software upgrade to a particular … Read more

Vaccine Wars, the ASEAN and the Quad

THE recent Quad declaration of the US, India, Japan and Australia has not foregrounded the military axis of their meeting but stressed more on the vaccine thrust against the Covid-19 pandemic. With the threat of … Read more

Market Fundamentalism and Texas Grid Failure

THE Texas grid failure impacted millions with no electricity and no heating in sub-zero temperatures for days. It has not only caused scores of deaths and injuries, but also economic havoc in the state. Even … Read more

Saluting Perseverance: NASA Rover on Mars

THERE is plenty to be depressed about these days. The year-long Covid-19 pandemic continues to plague people in India and around the world, the government obstinately refuses to engage with the existential issues raised by … Read more

Science, Technology & Innovation Policy 2020

THEgovernment has released a Science, Technology and Innovation Policy 2020 (STIP 2020) and invited responses by January 31, 2021. The Department of Science & Technology and the Office of the Principal Scientific Advisor to the … Read more

Vaccine Nationalism

THE world seems to have turned topsy-turvy when the undisputed voices of global capital start talking about the virtues of “cooperation” among nations and “universal vaccination” in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. The International Monetary … Read more

Forced Consent and no Transparency Can Create a Backlash Against Vaccines

THE drug regulator’s hurried emergency clearance to Bharat Bio-tech’s Covaxin in a clinical trial mode has been followed by the government making it integral to its mass vaccination drive. It has bought 1.1 crore doses … Read more