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Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai has taken over the reins of the Supreme Court with a kind of moral clarity and institutional courage that is rarely seen, especially in what is to be a short tenure. In his limited time at the helm, he has managed not only to make his presence felt but to shape a discourse that could potentially alter the perception and functioning of the judiciary for the better.

India’s demography is changing faster as per the UNFPA’s 2025 State of World Population (SOWP) report which has estimated it reached 146.39 crore by April 2025 compared to the India’s own technical group of experts projection of 141 crore. Faster than expected growth rate is but only one part of the challenges ahead. The report has actually revealed a host of real crisis that India will have to face in the years to come.

It was a masterpiece of self-deception, meant to let thousands believe a myth. On May 24 this year, NITI Aayog’s chief executive officer BVR Subrahmanyam declared: “We are the fourth-largest economy as I speak, and we are a four trillion Dollar economy, though the data, supplied by the IMF, remains confusing has been supplied by IMF.” He then added: “It is only US, China, Germany, that are larger than India and if we stick to what is being planned and what is being thought through, in 2.5-3 years, we will be the third largest economy.”

The contrast is like the darkness of last night and the day at 9am this morning. The ugly squat chaos in Delhi and the neat order in the United Arab Emirates. The UAE has a new licensing system for social media influencers and content creators. They have to get business licenses before applying for a media license from the UAE Media Council.

Indian state, as guaranteed and obligated under the Constitution has the legal responsibility to protect the right of lives of its citizens. If it feels that an individual is involved in criminal activities, in that case the activity of that person must be investigated, before initiating any action against him. Nevertheless the Narendra Modi led BJP Government for protecting the interest of the rightist forces has been unashamedly violating this constitutional provision by resorting to deliberate killing of a person or persons without the lawful authority granted by a judicial proceeding.

There has never been a time since independence when the Election Commission of India (ECI) came under such a great public distrust as it has been freely expressed now. ECI is supposed to do its duty as a neutral umpire in electoral battle, but unfortunately at numerous occasions it seemed functioning as just an extension of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Autonomy of this Constitutional body has been clipped through legal instruments. During elections, it has been seen favouring PM Narendra Modi, most strikingly with respect to his hate speeches, and after election, it has been blocking even electoral data.

When the Narendra Modi government started building toilets for people to use, tens of thousands in India's hinterlands were reluctant as they were used to open air defecation, the traditional way of clearing the bowels in the relative freedom of an open sky!

India’s economic growth figures seem to be getting increasingly delinked with domestic manufacturing, industrial output, and job generation. The manufacturing sector had a very little contribution to the country’s 6.5 percent GDP growth during the last financial year, the slowest in four years. Despite a good monsoon last year, the country’s agriculture sector growth rate in the second quarter (October-March) was 3.5 percent. The industrial growth rate for 2024-25 is estimated to be only four percent, also marking the lowest in the last four years. In April, the country’s industrial output slowed to an eight-month low at 2.7 percent as per the data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO). What is pushing the country's GDP growth? Obviously, the less reliable estimates of the country’s vast services sector backed substantially by imports.

KOLKATA: Manipur is on the boil again with the National Investigative Agency and the Central Bureau of Investigation stepping up their respective activity. Ironically, the fresh violence, the persisting deep ethnic divide and deactivated internet services in five of Manipur’s 16 districts serve as the backdrop of the talks with the Kuki-Zo insurgent groups which the Union ministry of home affairs has scheduled for June 9. Despite the unfortunate developments, the chances of the scheduled talks being held are 100 per cent because MHA has chosen New Delhi as the venue; instead of capital Imphal or any other suitable place in the strife-scarred state. The talks will be presided over by MHA’s north-east advisor A K Mishra, who is to be aided by an official of the rank of joint director.

On June 9, this year, as BJP celebrates 11 years of PM Narendra Modi led government in India as golden period of the country, unemployment rate stood at 6.9 per cent as per Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data based on 30-day moving average basis. This is the only data available on real time basis in the country.