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The Winter Session of Parliament went its way after days of pandemonium. Some would say to a “wintery end”, what with the ice-cold vibes between the Modi government and the Opposition led by LoP Rahul Gandhi, especially after the BJP-led NDA government filed an FIR against a combative Leader of the Opposition. Moreover, Rahul has got a tremendous push since Priyanka Gandhi Vadra joined him on the Opposition benches after her massive election victory from Kerala’s Wayanad parliamentary constituency. Priyanka is the third Gandhi family member in Parliament, including Sonia Gandhi in the Rajya Sabha, which is unprecedented and a record.

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s recent trip (15-17th Dec 2024) to India is an important moment in strengthening the ties between the two neighbouring countries. This visit highlights the growing bond and cooperation between India and Sri Lanka. This was his first official trip abroad since becoming President in September, showing his dedication to strengthening economic relations with India while also tackling worries about China’s growing role in Sri Lanka.

The introduction of the controversial bill, 'One Nation One Poll,' has created more hullabaloo than acceptance. The BJP has been talking about it, but now after introducing it has sent it to the joint select committee of the Parliament.

India is still struggling to meet the target of the National Forest Policy set 35 years ago in 1988. In 2023, it could attain a forest and tree cover of only 25.17 percent against the target of a minimum one-third (33.3 percent) of the total land area of the country to maintain environmental stability, restore ecological balance and conserve natural heritage. Since then the climate change induced environmental crisis has aggravated and it is frustrating.

A new waste-to-energy incineration plant is set to be established in Bawana to burn 3,000 tonnes of mixed municipal solid waste daily per day. Currently, Delhi burns 7,250 tonnes of garbage daily across plants in Okhla, Tehkhand, Ghazipur, and Bawana, with plans to expand the capacity of these plants by an additional 5,000 tonnes daily.

While Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘friend’, the US President-elect Donald J Trump, is set to move into White House, once again, it need not be particularly beneficial for India. If anything, Trump can be said to be “anti-India” even while remaining “pro-Modi”. The camaraderie contrasts starkly with the president-elect’s anti-India economic stance, which has already manifested in threats of retaliatory tariffs and a staunch defence of the US dollar as the global currency.

India’s only decent job creation flagship programme announced in the Union Budget 2024-25 has gone out of track. Though supposed to be launched on August 1, it is now likely to be launched in January 2025, since details of the programmes are not yet ready. One of the reasons for the inordinate delay is, the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment has told the Department related Parliamentary Committee, was pendency of Union Cabinet’s approval.

The aim of all fascistic governments is to disempower the people and the Modi government is no exception. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), which promised one member in every rural household a maximum of 100 days of employment per year, was a demand-driven scheme. In a limited sense, therefore, it gave people a right to employment, not to everyone and not for as many days as a person wanted, but a right nonetheless.

The situation has gone out of hand. The tiger nurtured by the RSS has tasted blood. And RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat giving the impression he can goad the monster is nothing but a blinkered attempt to fool the people. The RSS claim that it's a cultural and social organisation is a bluff. Since its birth in 1925, the RSS has had a well-defined and mischievous political agenda: Divide society and outrage societal ethics and norms.

Will the 16th Finance Commission, which has begun its exercise, be more sympathetic to India’s tribal areas than its predecessor? Will the commission, mandated by the Constitution and whose recommendations hold good for five years, devise ways to alleviate the chronic fund crunch of these autonomous institutions? Will it find solutions to functional hitches which invariably arise between the state government and the autonomous institutions, where election results do not facilitate ‘double engine’ governance?