To colleagues working in their newsrooms or on the field in these days of Corona scare… To those comrades who will not or cannot isolate or quarantine themselves… To associates who will tomorrow again “cover” Parliament, the offices on Raisina Hill, or various hospitals, or other ‘beats’… From my hardworking young friend @IamNaveenKapoor handle I may not be anywhere there, but my thoughts, my wishes, my applause are always for you, with you… When countrymen open their newspapers, switch on to a news channel or log onto a news-site, they will know what they want to know because you were there to source out what you know they will want to know… When such calamities strike, editors scramble reporters to ground zero. And this time, it’s ground zero everywhere! What is worse – and what I can understand – your beat, your daily reporting will become tougher and tougher as the “society is walled off”. And the times aren’t good for either news or for the media industry a...

Perhaps the biggest leap taken by mankind in recent time on social media or a messaging platform was with the invention of WhatsApp. It is free (almost), it is convenient, and it is ubiquitous! But armchair warriors have turned this boon into a bane! With several hate messages going viral on WhatsApp following north-east Delhi riots, @DelhiPolice tweeted on March 3: “Hey guys! Not done. You have taken the job of spreading नफ़रत so brazenly. Rest assured, we are watching you all, and mighty well. While we know some of these are fake IDs, be sure of our capabilities to hunt you down  😎 . Take this as a sweet warning! #DelhiPoliceNailsFake” An idea that was meant to unite is being used by bigots and zealots to divide. They are spreading falsehood and – through it – also hatred. There is a term that is being widely used for messages that have no basis, only bias – WhatsApp University. Again, this is how a senior police officer in India, @IPSMadhurVerma, m...

(Pic courtesy: Gopal Dutt Sharma) In India, it may. But many a times it cannot. This despite the fact that media -- especially TV news -- is said to be self-regulatory. Take the example of a government ban on two Malayalam (Kerala) news channels over their coverage of violence in Delhi. The 48-hour embargo, imposed on February 6 was however revoked the next day following “representation” from the channels, reported news outlets. The order reportedly included… "Channel's reporting on Delhi violence seems to be biased as it is deliberately focusing on the vandalism of CAA supporters... It also questions RSS and alleges Delhi Police inaction. Channel seems to be critical towards Delhi Police and RSS…". (Pic courtesy: Gopal Dutt Sharma) If so, is this an official statement on who, or what the media cannot or should not "criticize"? Not the first time Indian media critical of the government of the day was “banned”. It was perhaps wors...

Shubho Bijoya…! Stay blessed… Durga Puja held as Sharadutsav is actually “untimely” and thus called Akal Bodhan (or the untimely invocation). That is why the Puja held in October or nearabouts (the month of Ashwin in Lunar calendar) begins with Bodhan (to awake or invoke). Durga was worshipped during Spring. But the origin of Shardiye Navaratra – which is more popular – owes its tradition to the Ramayan. In Ramayan, Ram had to battle Ravan, the king of Lanka, who had abducted his wife. The story goes that Ram was unable to defeat Ravan to get back Sita despite using all tactics of warfare. He then decided to invoke Goddess Durga though it was Autumn and not the time for her Puja. One of the rituals required the offering of 108 blue lotuses. But every time Ram made the offering, there was a flower short! The reason being that Ravan had already invoked Durga in his favour! And she was bound by her word! An exasperated Ram is said to then have then decided to offer ...

Distance from earth to the moon is estimated at 3,84,000 km. Thus, Chandrayaan-2 successfully covered 3,83,998 km. India’s rocket to the moon this time was the first ever attempt at a soft-landing on the lunar South Pole. Even the ‘superpowers’ are yet to try that. ISRO lost contact with lander Vikram minutes before it was supposed to touch the lunar surface. But remember, Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter is still operational. *                             *                             * ‘Space is Hard’ “We choose to go to the moon… and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard…” (Excerpts from a speech by the then US president John F. Kennedy at Rice Stadium in Houston, Te...

It was the early nineties – there was no electricity and fuel supply was very limited to feed the generator – the hotel on a hillock overlooking the southern fringe of Kabul was dark. But for the few candles, various flashlights and makeshift lamps, total blackout could have taken over the once plush hotel – part of a renowned international chain. Thus, I would sit by the window and watch the horizon light up with firepower after dark; unaware that in a few years, this part of the hotel would almost crumble when the Taliban militia advanced. Most of the rooms were been occupied by long-haired and bearded, multi-pocket-vest-wearing, Kalashnikov-carrying mujahideen. Each wanted to be addressed as ‘commander’. Food was served in a large hall, with the menu comprising a lamb broth and large, thick bread and/or ‘Kabooli’ – rice fried with some vegetable and dry fruits sprinkled over. The residents shared this feast three times a day; followed – or preceded, or accompanied – by...

This recount is related to an earlier post written elsewhere. It’s about the events before the actual incident which has already been rendered Please Read:  https://www.timesnownews.com/international/article/the-pak-hand-in-first-person/379637 *              *              * It was impossible to venture beyond the borders of Kabul. The city’s southern part was being bombed intermittently by the Pashtun warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. And he had agreed to an interview when contacted on his satellite phone! So to cut down on the agony, we stepped into the Kabul Museum, or whatever was left of it. There were a few stone idols of Buddha that were different avatar. With curly, but ancient Roman-styled hair, and sporting a mustache! The tour was cut short by sounds of heavy thuds coming from some place nearby. “Suckers!” cried our local contact: “The...