THE ministerial level quadrilateral meeting comprising the United States, Japan, Australia and India was held in Tokyo on October 6.  Known as the Quad, the four country grouping is fast shaping up as a military alliance targeted at China. The foreign minister, S Jaishankar, had stated in September that India will not become part of an “alliance system”.  But the developments concerning the Quad belie this stance.

INDIA has witnessed a number of industrial accidents recently -- toxic gas leak at LG Polymers factory in Visakhapatnam, boiler explosion at Yashashvi Rasayan Private Limited in Gujarat’s Dahej, two boiler explosions in Tamil Nadu, toxic gas leak at a paper mill in Chhattisgarh, and boiler explosion at a Lucknow chemical factory. In addition, the coal mining sector has reported some accidents.

COME September 27 (September 28 according to some), India will be commemorating the birth anniversary of Shaheed-e-azam Bhagat Singh. An eternal youth icon, Bhagat Singh’s birth anniversary should be an occasion for us to look at the status of youth in our country, the relevance of Bhagat Singh’s ideas, particularly in today’s socio-economic and political situation.In the past nine months, while the entire world was busy fighting the pandemic and socio-economic conditions exacerbated by it, there were a series of reports released about the status of youth.

SEPTEMBER 28, 2020 marks the 113th birth anniversary of India’s legendary martyr, Bhagat Singh.  He may be distanced in time each year, but his relevance resonates closer to our challenges today. This occasion, this year, comes at a time when many observations made by Bhagat Singh resonate a contemporary relevance and urgency.

Moreover, such actions prevent the members of Parliament from carrying out their constitutional obligations of questioning, debating, discussing and scrutinising government policies and actions.THE decision to go without “question hour” during the monsoon session of parliament, beginning September 14, has evoked serious concerns about the democratic functioning of the institution. Question hour is not only an opportunity for the members to raise questions, but it is a parliamentary device primarily meant for exercising legislative control over executive actions.