THE policy announced of lateral entry into the civil service at the level of joint secretary has raised a number of questions. The central government has advertised for ten posts of joint secretary to be recruited by a committee headed by the cabinet secretary. The applicants can be from either the public sector, universities, or, the private sector including those working in multinational companies. The requirement is that they should have 15 years experience in the job.
THE Singapore meeting between the leader of the DPRK Kim Jong-un and the president of the Untied States Donald Trump on June 12 was a landmark event. The joint statement issued after the summit committed the United States to provide security guarantees to the DPRK while Kim Jong-un reaffirmed his commitment to the complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.
THE two months that have elapsed since the Bharat bandh of April 2 against the dilution of the Prevention of Atrocities against SCs/STs (POA) by the Supreme Court judgment have seen the most vicious and vindictive attacks on dalits in the BJP-ruled states of UP, MP, Rajasthan and Maharashtra.
They have displayed the deep anti-dalit bias of the BJP run state governments and the upper-caste chauvinism of the Hindutva forces.
ONCE again, there is some talk about talks to be held on Jammu & Kashmir. On May 26, the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, in a media interview said that the government is ready to hold talks with Hurriyat, if the Hurriyat leadership is ready for such talks. As far as Pakistan is concerned, he stated that the government is ready to hold talks with Pakistan if it comes forward to hold talks but added that terrorism promoted by Pakistan has to end.
THE Cobrapost sting investigation has graphically exposed the deep rot which has afflicted major sections of the media, both print and television.
The Cobrapost expose involves 25 media organisations, including major ones, such as the Times of India, Zee TV, India Today, Hindustan Times, ABP News, Jagran Group and others. This was the second installment of the revelations.
THE Modi government is observing its completion of four years in office under the shadow of the debacle the BJP suffered in Karnataka. This has imbued the fourth anniversary with a political significance of its own.
THE Karnataka election has resulted in a hung Assembly. The BJP has emerged as the single largest party winning 104 seats but falling short of a majority by eight; the Congress was defeated getting only 78 seats and the Janata Dal (Secular) got 37 seats and its ally BSP won 1.
AS anticipated, President Trump has announced the withdrawal of the United States from the nuclear agreement with Iran. This brazen and unwarranted reneging from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action which was signed by six countries with Iran, is going to have serious consequences for peace in the Middle East.
AS we observe the bicentenary of the birth of Karl Marx, one cannot but be struck by the innumerable times Marxism was declared dead or irrelevant after he had left the scene a hundred and thirty five years ago. However, Marx and his thought, kept bouncing back to public attention. This is because the ideas of Marx, concern social and historical change and that is something which cannot become anachronistic at any period of time.
THE 22nd Congress of the CPI(M) held in Hyderabad discussed how to build a strong party with an all-India mass base – the goal set out by the Kolkata Plenum on Organisation held in December 2015. The Political-Organisational Report presented to the Congress reviewed the implementation of the organisational tasks set out by the Plenum.
The Plenum had pointed out that the expansion of the Party and its mass base requires the stepping up of the class and mass struggles conducted by the Party and the mass organisations. There have been serious efforts in this direction.
