ANYONE who wishes to pursue PhD research in India must appear for the UGC-NET (National Eligibility Test), which, until 2024-25, was conducted to determine the eligibility of Indian nationals for the posts of ‘Assistant Professor’ and ‘Junior Research Fellowship and Assistant Professor’ in Indian universities and colleges.In 2024, the union government – under the guise of “standardising” and “enhancing” the quality of research programmes – made NET scores a key criterion for PhD admissions.

THE latest blitz of advertisements by the Election Commission (EC) is a textbook example of hypocrisy. In order to establish that Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls for the upcoming Bihar Assembly polls is inclusive, the text of the advertisement claims that it is inclusive of the political parties. Any electoral reform in this country so far has been jointly pursued by the EC and the political parties. So much so, that the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), is based on consensus across political parties.

THE Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), in a statement issued on August 4, has unequivocally condemned the brazen and disastrous mass retrenchment plan of India’s largest IT company, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which is set to affect 2 per cent of its global workforce – over 12,000 employees across India. This sudden attack has been unleashed upon the workforce at a time when TCS reported consolidated revenue of Rs 2,55,324 crore for FY 2024–25 – a 6 per cent year-on-year growth – and the industry’s highest operating profit margin of 24.3 per cent.

THE 17th death anniversary of Comrade Harkishan Singh Surjeet, internationally renowned CPI(M) leader, former general secretary of the CPI(M), founder of the Baba Sohan Singh Bhakna Trust, and Punjabi daily Desh Sewak, was commemorated at Baba Sohan Singh Bhakna Bhawan in Chandigarh, on August 1.The meeting was presided over by Trust members Major Singh Bhikhiwind and Gurdarshan Singh Khaspur, with Bhup Chand Channo, CPI(M) state secretariat member, conducting the proceedings.Floral tributes were paid by Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, Central Committee member of the CPI(M) and MLA from

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement on August 7, 2025THE Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) strongly condemns the United States for imposing a 50 per cent tariff on Indian exports. This unilateral move is arbitrary, dictatorial and reflects the bullying tactics of the US administration.US President Donald Trump announced that a 25 per cent tariff would be imposed on Indian exports for not accepting all the demands made by the US during ongoing trade negotiations.