THE media is agog with stories about rail privatisation. The ministry of railways has sought private players’ request for qualification for 151 trains running on 109 rail routes. Howrah-Delhi, Howrah-Chennai, Howrah-Mumbai and Delhi-Mumbai are among the routes to be privatised. The lifelines of Mumbai and Kolkata, the suburban trains, will also be given to private entities.

CPI(M) Polit Bureau has issued the following statement on July 20

THE third wave of floods in Assam, a more devastating one, has seriously affected the life and livelihood of more than 35 lakh people. Already 84 people have lost their lives. More than 3000 villages of 24 districts are damaged by land erosion by the mighty Brahmaputra, Barak and their tributaries. The flood has damaged 1.27 lakh hectares of cropped area and loss of innumerable livestock. Thousands of bridges, embankments, dwelling houses and public properties are washed off.

ON July 26, 1953, Fidel Castro and his compatriots stormed the Moncada garrison as part of their struggle against the then dictatorial regime in Cuba. Though that effort failed and Fidel himself was arrested and many lost their lives, this proved to be the pivotal moment in Cuba’s revolutionary history. It gave birth to the July 26 movement that spread throughout the country and contributed to the success of the subsequent armed guerrilla struggle led by Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Raul Castro, Camilo Cienfuegos, and others.

IN Himachal Pradesh, the apple economy is about Rs 5,000 crore. It is the backbone of the state’s economy. During the past few years due to the implementation of the neoliberal economic policies by the successive governments in the state, the horticulture  sector especially the apple industry has been neglected. The subsidies on fertilizers, pesticides and insecticides were withdrawn. The research and development projects were also neglected. The budgetary provisions on research in horticulture universities have also reduced.

IN four years, Reliance Jio used its oil and gas revenues to finance its entry into telecom and become the leading Indian player. It bled the others with its initial low cost, predatory pricing till they surrendered, letting Jio emerge as the undisputed market leader.  Jio has also made claims that its network is free from any Chinese equipment, and of an in-house, ‘indigenous’ 5G technology, positioning itself as a major player in the US-China 5G trade war.