A WIDE swathe of rocky hills and forests stretches from Mirzapur to Sonbhadra in Uttar Pradesh, home to various tribal groups – Gonds, Kols and Bhils.  The area is rich in minerals and water-resources and has seen the establishment of cement factories, Hindalco,  large power plants, the Rihand and Kemur dams at the cost of the poor and their land.  Promises of compensation and jobs never materialised.The attacks are unrelenting.  Powerful politicians, bureaucrats, babas and strongmen regularly occupy their land forcibly.  Every year sees the death and maiming of a few poor people.

IN justification of the move to end Kashmir’s special status, Amit Shah in his speech in the Rajya Sabha brought in the question of Kashmir’s “development”, arguing that closer integration with the rest of India will bring in much investment into the region. He especially appealed to the youth of Kashmir, promising that they would have larger employment opportunities.When unemployment in India has never been as bad as now in the last 45 years, to claim that closer integration with India will improve Kashmir’s employment prospects, is ironical.

WHAT was notable about the spate of legislations presented in the first session of parliament was the hurried manner in which they were passed without any legislative scrutiny.  There was no reference to the standing committees or select committees to get the bills vetted and considered.

THE Netflix film, The Great Hack, relates Cambridge Analytica’s role in Trump’s 2016 elections to a much larger issue – the threat to our democracy from global tech giants.  It is not the Facebook data that Cambridge “hacked”, but the election itself.  And what is at stake is not just an election, but the very future of democracy. If elections can be hacked, so can our democracy.

Sitaram Yechury, CPI(M) general secretary, expressed his profound grief at the passing away of Shri S Jaipal Reddy. He issued a condolence message on July 28.Yechury said, “During his long political life, he consistently and steadfastly worked to uphold and strengthen the secular democratic foundations of India as enshrined in the constitution. An honest and upright politician, he will be known for his erudition and scholarship.“I had a close association with him for nearly four decades.