Kashmir’s Dying Ramsar Sites

Kashmir’s Dying Ramsar Sites

The two Union Territories of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir State have about three-thousand six-hundred and fifty-one big and small wetlands spread across all twenty-two districts of both J&K and Ladakh. Of these wetlands, four are of international importance and of greater importance than those in all other Indian states and Union Territories. Among these […]

Smokers at a greater risk of PAD – Stents can treat the condition

Smokers at a greater risk of PAD – Stents can treat the condition

Peripheral artery disease is a common circulatory problem in which narrowed arteries reduce blood flow to the limbs. The legs don’t receive enough blood flow to keep up with demand of day to day walking. This causes symptoms, most notably leg pain when walking called claudication which disappears after a few minutes of rest but […]

On World Wetlands Day: Feb 2

On World Wetlands Day: Feb 2

J&K Wetlands: Lifeline of birds, fish, plants, and humans Every year February 2 is celebrated as World Wetlands Day to raise international awareness about the significant role of wetlands for people and for our planet. This day marks the date of adoption of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance in 1971. Currently, India […]

Book Review: The complicated lives of simple men

Book Review: The complicated lives of simple men

Steinbeck conveys his core belief that if we try to know people then it would be impossible for us to hate them The Great Depression of 1930s is considered as a classic example of failure of the free-market economy. That model caused misery to millions of people and its failure led to the rise of […]

Join the Women’s Movement, Outdoors

Join the Women’s Movement, Outdoors

Right to safe, efficient and reliable public transport is key to women’s safety Efficient, affordable and reliable public transport is a remarkable indicator of development and sign of a successful welfare state. Public transport attains more significance in non-egalitarian, gender-biased societies where safety of women is always at stake. Objectification of women is deeply embedded […]

A letter to His Excellency, DSEK, on the cruelty of coaching centres

A letter to His Excellency, DSEK, on the cruelty of coaching centres

Honourable Sir, I’m not used to the format of addressing highly dignified personalities openly in the public. I respect the seat your worthy self holds and I put my sheer respect and reverence before your honourable chair and your excellency. The reason for addressing you through the medium of this newspaper lies in what happened […]

The Burden of Breath

The Burden of Breath

The purpose of life is to find a mode of being that’s so meaningful that the fact that life is suffering is no longer relevant. To start with, this is totally not an advertisement because the person I’m writing about probably has no idea that I’m writing about him. I’m writing this article because a […]

Order and stability is the law of nature

Order and stability is the law of nature

Chaos is neither basic nor permanent, but it works as a restraint on disorder, instability and chaos itself. The pain it inflicts serves as chastisement for those who disregard order and stability and do not conform. Order and disorder are complementary to each other. It is actually the same thing in different guises. Have a […]

UNSC’s Reforms and India’s Ambitions

UNSC’s Reforms and India’s Ambitions

The United Nations (UN) was set up 75 years ago with the aim of maintaining world peace and security. However, the 21st century world is very different from the 20th century one. The humanitarian and economic losses due to the Covid-19 pandemic are comparable to that of major wars. Unemployment is worse than at any […]

Private coaching centres need to be taught some lessons

Private coaching centres need to be taught some lessons

Education has been virtually outsourced to private tuition/ coaching centres in Kashmir, without any checks and balances A few days ago I had to visit a local J&K Bank branch to replace my expired debit card with a new one. I had just driven a few kilometers from my home when I was caught in […]