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Youth are India's greatest resource: Martin Luther King-III Kolkata, Feb 26: Championing the cause of non-violence like his father, Martin Luther King-III Thursday said here that a nation should spend as much on public service as on defence and that the younger generation was India's greatest asset.

Moderate Islam needs to condemn jihadism unequivocally By Bhamy V. Shenoy: There has been an outpouring of sympathy for India from all over the world after the recent Mumbai carnage just like what the US received after 9/11.

India should take leadership role in India Ocean region By A. Vinod Kumar: When the Indian Navy chief, Admiral Sureesh Mehta, warned about terrorists potentially using shipping containers for transporting nuclear weapons, he was in a way referring to the need for comprehensive security measures against proliferation by sea, which incidentally is deemed as the most frequented route of proliferators, especially in the Indian Ocean region.

Hurdles in Advani's prime ministerial path By Amulya Ganguli, L.K. Advani's website proclaims that he puts the nation first, the party second and self last. For the present, however, the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) prime ministerial candidate is probably concerned more about himself than about the first two.

Zardari must prove he is president, not an army puppet By Amulya Ganguli : India-Pakistan relations have reached not only their lowest point after the Mumbai massacres but also perhaps their most dangerous phase ever.

Will Poznan climate conference save the Earth? By Andrei Fedyashin, Moscow, Dec 6 : The UN conference on climate change has been in session in Poznan, Poland, where delegates from 192 countries will prepare the draft of a document intended to replace the 1997 Kyoto protocol on reducing the greenhouse gas (GHG).

What will be US military policy under Obama? By Ilya Kramnik, Moscow, Dec 5 : The new US administration is assuming office against the background of a growing global economic crisis and continued conflicts in different countries.

TV blabbering is not journalism: Lessons from the live coverage By B.R.P.Bhaskar : News channel bosses must be patting themselves on the back on their marathon terror coverage. For three days they had treated the viewers to live coverage of the multiple terror strikes in Mumbai. In doing so, they probably set a record in television history.

Needed: Revamp of national security apparatus By C. Uday Bhaskar : The multiple terrorist attacks that ravaged Mumbai with the death toll overshooting 180 have led to a justified outpouring of anger and anguish across the length and breadth of the country. India is outraged. Period. This is not the first terrorist attack that India has experienced - Mumbai alone recalls 1993 and 2006 with bitter memories. And tragically this may not be the last, given the ruthless determination of the extremist groups ranged against the idea of India.

One night at the Taj Mahal hotel - survivor narrates terror ordeal By Mukesh Berry : We started our evening casually at The Taj Mahal Palace at the Crystal Ball Room. I got there at 9.35 p.m. Wednesday with my brother Manish for our friend's wedding reception. We hadn't been there 15 minutes when we heard sounds we dismissed as construction work or crackers. When the 'boom boom' went on and got nearer, it was apparent they were gunshots.

India's 9/11: Will this be its wake-up call? By Amulya Ganguli : Just as the images of billowing smoke from the twin towers of New York are seared in the memories of people all over the world, similarly the television visuals of the raging fire in the ornate façade of Mumbai's iconic Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel will be recalled whenever the deadly terrorist attack on India's financial capital Nov 26-29 is mentioned. The booming sound of gunfire as the security forces engaged the jehadis will also become a part of the nation's collective memory.

Failure of Indian intelligence: The buck stops nowhere By Wilson John : Almost a dozen state police units and intelligence agencies were tracking down terrorist groups across India for the past two years but missed to detect the activities of the men who were involved in the Mumbai terror attack.

Mumbai attacks may sharpen Obama's Kashmir focus By Mayank Chhaya, Chicago, Nov 28 : The multiple terror attacks on Mumbai could push the incoming Barack Obama administration to sharpen its focus on the Kashmir issue.

Politics clouds environmental issues in Delhi poll By Prashant Nanda , New Delhi, Nov 27 : A road and a river that symbolise the capital's environmental malaise are the only issues of ecological relevance to emerge in a tumultuous state assembly campaign defined by terrorism and the economy.

Premier NRI event needs big shake-up By Kul Bhushan : In these weeks, selected overseas Indians from across the globe are being invited to attend the annual Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) Jan 7-9, 2009, in Chennai. Meant to network with more than 25 million non-resident Indians, called NRIs, round the globe, this is the seventh flagship event of the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA).

The meteoric rise of Daniel Craig as Bond star By Sevanand Gaddala : When Daniel Craig first heard from the Bond producers that he had got the part of the super spy, he was in a store buying dishwashing tablets. After the call, he dropped them and bought a bottle of vodka instead. This perfectly sums up Craig.

Obese India: A ticking time bomb By Mahima Sukhdev : Fifty years from now, if current trends persist, obesity will be up there with climate change and water shortage as one of the biggest problems facing India.

Can Obama convert his many crises into opportunities? By Gwynne Dyer, Tehran, Nov 24 : US president-elect Barack Obama inherits the in-box from hell, but an all-points crisis like the present one also creates opportunities for radical change that do not exist in normal times.

For fresh thinking, two cheers for Rahul Gandhi By Amulya Ganguli : Since honesty is not generally associated with Indian politicians, it is always a matter of surprise and admiration when someone deviates from the usual cynical norms to acknowledge a widely accepted truth.

Celebrities as brand ambassadors: The 'hang in there' mantra By Sanjiv Kataria : As a young management student I was taught that using a celebrity to promote a brand was a risky proposition. The risks, I can recall, included questions like 'What if the celebrity's ratings were to drop? What if you could not handle a celebrity's tantrums? What if the celebrity was to become a super celebrity and dump your brand?'

Malegaon arrests: Elephant in the drawing room? By C. Uday Bhaskar : Malegaon has entered the tangled lexicon of the Indian narrative on terrorism but with some distinctive and disturbing features about it. This is the first time that a serving officer of the Indian Army has been arrested along with eight others alleged to have links with Hindu militant groups. This has caused predictable anxiety across the country and the spotlight has been turned on the secular credentials of the army. However, the matter is still under investigation and shrill emotive certitude must be kept on hold.

Will G20 take us out of the woods? By Andrei Fedyashin, Moscow, Nov 20 : The Washington summit of the Group of 20 (G20) industrialised and emerging economies last week arrived at a general agreement on how to cooperate in key areas to strengthen economic growth, deal with the financial crisis, and to avoid similar crises in the future.

Kashmir terror trail vanishes in Kerala's political sands By B.R.P. Bhaskar : A month after the Kerala police got on the job, investigators are yet to provide a satisfactory explanation for the presence of youths from the state among those killed in encounters with the security forces in a remote area of the Kashmir valley.

Why pirates stay undeterred By Ilya Kramnik, Moscow, Nov 18 : The pirates who hijacked the Danish vessel CEC Future in the Gulf of Aden last week were not deterred by a large group of warships from different countries, including Russia's Neustrashimy frigate, sent to the gulf to protect merchant vessels.

The saffron brotherhood becomes a hydra-headed monster? By Amulya Ganguli : Even as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) swings between the conflicting positions of the present and former party presidents, Rajnath Singh and L.K. Advani, on the issue of 'Hindu terrorism', the party cannot be unaware that it is dealing with perhaps the most explosive issue in its 28-year life.

India has to worry over New Zealand election result By Balaji Chandramohan : Both the Indian government and New Zealand's Indian community will be concerned that a conservative rightwing government has come to power in Auckland after general elections this month.

What India should expect from Barack Obama, what it shouldn't By Girish Bhaskar : As president-elect Barack Obama waits to take over the administration of the US, he faces daunting challenges on both the domestic and foreign fronts. The expectations both within and outside the country are very high. In his post-victory speech, Obama cautioned that change will take time. Some of his efforts may prove anti-climactic. People all over the world are expecting big things from Obama as he ran a campaign as an agent for change.

Jehadis could target Obama with psychological warfare By Mayank Chhaya : President-elect Barack Obama's reputedly conciliatory approach towards international flashpoints can potentially open the door for psychological warfare against the United States by Islamic jehadi groups.

Has China finally shut the door on Dalai Lama? By Mayank Chhaya : The door has been peremptorily shut on the Dalai Lama's quest for a 'middle path' peaceful solution to the over five-decade-old Tibet dispute with China accusing him of seeking 'ethnic cleansing' across the region.

Media support for Obama: US differs from India By Amulya Ganguli : A distinctive feature of the American election scene was the open editorial support given to Barack Obama by such well-known newspapers as Washington Post and Los Angeles Times.

Washington summit: Expect major showdown between US and world powers By K. Subrahmanyam: Whether it is the ASEM summit in Beijing or the G-20 meeting convened by President George W. Bush in his last weeks in office, it is obvious that the present global financial turmoil is recognised as being an international problem that needs to be handled globally in a cooperative manner.

Economy not so bleak, but needs balancing act By Sushma Ramachandran: The economy seems to be looking up since last week with some positive gains for stock markets and moderation in inflation, giving the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) sufficient confidence to take more steps to infuse liquidity into the system.

Pheasant population declining in the Himalayas: Conservationist By Vishal Gulati, Shimla, Nov 4 : Pheasants, the shy and charming birds known for their brilliant plumage and common in the western Himalayas, are on the decline, not only in the region but across the globe, a biologist from the Britain-based World Pheasants Association has said.

Maharashtra and Orissa: fit cases for President's rule By Amulya Ganguli : If there is any justifiability at present in imposing President's rule on a state, it is in Maharashtra and Orissa. But governments at the centre have misused this constitutional provision so often in the past that the present regime lacks the moral authority to take the necessary step.

The Thackeray family's dubious inheritance By Amulya Ganguli : The Thackeray family's parochial agenda has a long history. It all began with Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray's father, Keshav Sitaram, who was a member of the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti, the organisation which spearheaded the agitation for a separate Maharashtra in the 1950s.

Tamil Nadu ferment stuns Rajapaksa but war will go on By M.R. Narayan Swamy : The sudden tumult in Tamil Nadu seeking an immediate truce in Sri Lanka has hit President Mahinda Rajapaksa where it hurts him most. But he is most unlikely to go for a ceasefire with the Tamil Tigers, regardless of what India may desire.

Why the global recession is also an opportunity for India By Prasanto K. Roy : The near recession in the US and the global meltdown will, of course, have its impact on India's high-tech industry, as it is one of the greatest financial crises of our globalised times. But it also presents an opportunity for Indian services vendors to improve their market share, while forcing them to diversify and de-risk across sectors and geography.

Next month's polls will lead to Manmohan-Advani face-off By Amulya Ganguli : The next round of assembly elections in five states, and also possibly in Jammu and Kashmir, will be of high importance for all the political parties for they will set the tone for next year's general election.

Mayawati out to settle personal scores, state be damned By Sharat Pradhan : Personal ego has led Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati to challenge the authority of the union government and undermine the status of United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi with whom she seems clearly out to settle several personal scores.

AGP unites but Mahanta re-entry signals rough road ahead By Syed Zarir Hussain, Guwahati, Oct 15 : Assam's main opposition party Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) has united with its breakaway factions generating some euphoria among supporters of regionalism in the state. But the road ahead is expected to be rough with street protests already visible against the re-entry of former chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta into his parent party.

Not a whimper of protest against Murdoch's entry in Kerala By B.R.P.Bhaskar : Kerala has ignored a call by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leadership to revolt against the entry of media mogul Rupert Murdoch's STAR TV network into the state.

Cry, my beloved Mangalore By Maxwell Pereira : The first holocaust for Mangalore Catholics happened in 1784 at the behest of Tipu Sultan. Following his defeat by the British in the first battle of Mangalore, Tipu's wrath had turned on the local Christian community, in the belief that it was their aid and support to the British that cost him his battle.

A train and a resolve: Symbols of hope for South Asia? By C Uday Bhaskar : History was made in South Asia last week by two seemingly different but yet inter-connected events that could become symbols of hope in a region that has been blighted by terrorism and discord for well over a decade.

Text of Chidambaram's statement on financial crisis New Delhi, Oct 13 : Following is the text of Finance Minister P. Chidambaram's statement here Monday, minutes ahead of the opening bell for stock markets, that sent key indices soaring after the gloom last week:

India weighing political impact of tough economic decisions By Sushma Ramachandran: The tsunami like financial crisis engulfing the globe has flooded India as well, virtually drowning the stock and currency markets.

India's nuclear deal - and two worldviews By K. Subrahmanyam : Now that India and the US have formally inked the 123 civil nuclear cooperation agreement and sealed another pact with France following the Sep 6 waiver by the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), it is time to look at the fierce debate on the issue in this country with some detachment.

Birds of a feather: Prakash Karat and Mamata Banerjee By Amulya Ganguli : If Prakash Karat is honest with himself, he will see the similarity between his opposition to the nuclear deal and Mamata Banerjee's scuttling of the Nano automobile project in Singur in West Bengal.

Why India stands largely insulated from global financial crisis By Sushma Ramachandran: The collapse of the mighty global financial system has triggered a series of chain reactions in India, but the impact is not going to be as widespread as earlier imagined. The reasons are numerous.

Jamia Millia: living a nightmare with remarkable restraint By Rumki Basu: For the past two weeks, Jamia Millia Islamia has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. Even in my worst nightmare I did not imagine that I would walk up to my political science department one day to face mediapersons waiting to establish the identity of an alleged terrorist killed in the Jamia Nagar police encounter.

India in peril: anti-minority campaign can undo economic gains By Amulya Ganguli : India's secularism has rarely been under a greater threat. The reasons, however, are mixed and complex.

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