In peril
Nine soldiers were killed in a blast in Kashmir on July 19. I learned about this tragic outrage via a tiny news item in my July 20 paper. (I was especially interested because this happened on a road I more...death ends fun | 22 Jul 2008
Paying Cards in Cairo: Mint Tea, Tarneeb and Tales of the City by Hugh Miles
Trade Paperback: £10.99 Published 03/04/2008Genre: Memoir, travelAn Abacus titleThere's an old saying that goes like this: "Lucky in cards, unlucky in love", but Hugh Miles (free more...Lotus Reads | 21 Jul 2008
‘Maya worried about SP-Cong alliance in UP’
Could deeper fears than just Income Tax Department notices be behind the Bahujan Samaj Party’s eagerness to help topple the UPA government on Tuesday? Analysts and political observers say the surviv more...National Highway | 20 Jul 2008
An interview wth Pico Iyer
This interview appears today in Mint.In the two decades since the publication of his first book Video Night In Kathmandu Pico Iyer has produced a body of work so influential that for most people he is more...The Middle Stage | 19 Jul 2008
Recently updated posts
These old posts of mine have been recently updated with links to good new essays: On Barack Obama's The Audacity of Hope, On Ma Jian's Beijing Coma, and Travelling With Graham Robb.And coming up on th more...The Middle Stage | 18 Jul 2008
Name Games
In India-------------Renaming of Lucknow airportAt a time like this, is of import.Will Ajit Singh,with his trineMPs, now fall in lineAnd promise the government support? The Hindu, 18/07/08: NEW DELHI: more...Newsmericks | 17 Jul 2008
Caging the numbers
The minister prayed, amidst wails,"Bless us Lord, that our government prevails;Help our numbers increase."Said the the Lord, "That's a breezeAll you need to do - visit some jails!"DNA 17/07/08: Powe more...Newsmericks | 17 Jul 2008
Wily
Yes, I was sad when I killed the poor guy. Now think of the futility and frustration that produced this desperate plea for justice. And if you empathize, you may be interested In some soup. more...death ends fun | 16 Jul 2008
EU panel to take up attack on Kashmir rights activist
[An edited, shorter version of this article by me appeared this morning in Sakaal Times.] The European Union sub-committee on human rights will hold tomorrow a hearing in its Brussels tomorrow on the more...National Highway | 16 Jul 2008
Ping
It has been brought to my notice (thank you ma'am) that this blog has been brought to the notice of a respected Fellow at the "International Foundation for the Promotion of National Greatness", and th more...death ends fun | 15 Jul 2008
‘We had warned Delhi not to take normalcy for granted’
[An edited, shorter version of this interview appeared in Sakaal Times on 7 July.] Even as the PDP tries to occupy the moral high-ground in the aftermath of a successful azadi-inclined agitation agai more...National Highway | 10 Jul 2008
New city
In the early 1970s, my father JB D'Souza headed the Maharashtra Government agency CIDCO. At the time, CIDCO's mandate was to visualize and build, on the farmland of Vashi and surrounds, a city called more...death ends fun | 14 Jul 2008
Another Blogiversary at Newsmericks!
Well of late, we've been slack, I'll agree,First the house, then the holidaying spree.But nothing this day,Could keep me away,For today, my Newsmericks turns three!Yes, we turn 3 today! A toast to all more...Newsmericks | 14 Jul 2008
Unmoved by
An earlier post here was, in effect, one reason I am usually left unmoved by what's called "realpolitik". Below is another, from the same source. (There may be a third, also from there). For what it's more...death ends fun | 12 Jul 2008
Evening is the Whole Day by Preeta Samarasan and Love Marriage by V V Ganeshananthan
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin CompanyPub. Date: May 2008 352ppAs those of you who read my blog on a regular basis will know, I am very partial to novels that explore the lives of the Indian diaspora. I more...Lotus Reads | 12 Jul 2008
Inflation begins to hurt
[An edited, shorter version of this article by me has appeared in Sakaal Times.] As inflation hit a 42-month high on Friday, consumers’ anxiety also hit a new high, even as big retail stores are exp more...National Highway | 12 May 2008
Gujjar row: Raje govt looking for alternatives
[An edited, shorter version of this article by me has appeared in Sakaal Times.] Jaipur: The Rajasthan government could be bringing fresh proposals to the table to give Gurjars reservation benefits wi more...National Highway | 06 Jun 2008
Mayawati, a year later
Yesterday, three days before Kumari Mayawati completes a year as Uttar Pradesh chief minister, a Union minister in the Manmohan Singh cabinet quit the Congress and joined the Bahujan Samaj Party. So d more...National Highway | 13 May 2008
Report on Pandit killings rekindles communal fissures in Valley
Kashmiri Pandit groups have reacted sharply to media reports that the Jammu and Kashmiri Police has prepared a report saying that ‘only’ 209 Kashmiri Pandits have been killed in the Valley since 1 more...National Highway | 10 May 2008
