Habitat for Humanity
This is the story of a Bengali in Beijing, of the searingly intense personality of a creative artist whose enthusiasm for Potunghua (Mandarin) borders on passion. His extraordinary tale is filled with scholarly eccentricities, wit, humor and a deep love for everything Chinese. Meet Amitava Bhattacharyya.
A recent report quoted a doctor with Beijing’s Chaoyang Hospital as saying that the reason for primary and middle school children committing suicide is that they are so worried about the test to get into a good school. We witness the same scenario in India too as students are pressured so much to perform well in classes.
Your trip to Brisbane city would be absolutely incomplete without a visit to the incredibly beautiful garden which is known as Roma Street Parkland. I was fortunate to take a stroll across this spectacular garden with my cousin, a Brisbanian, during my trip to Down Under.
During the Left’s 34-year-rule in Bengal, the Congress was one of the chief Opposition parties. The Left was lambasted by the Opposition for its anti-people economic policies. Following the debacles in parliamentary election in 2009 and assembly polls in 2011, the Left Front as well as the CPI(M) have been losing their relevance. They have become marginalized in both national and state politics. This has compelled the Left to consider the prospects of entering into an alliance with the Congress. One would have to wait till the elections to find if such an alliance—provided it materializes–can help the Left regain its lost political ground and its credibility.
Deepak Nagrani, who has created and patented MasterPan, a unique and innovative kitchenware, has been living in Hong Kong over the past five decades. His vision and innovation will surely be a lesson for many budding entrepreneurs in India. In a candid interview, Deepak talks about the unique kitchenware he has created and patented, the business environment in HK and the contribution of Indian businesses to the growth of Hong Kong.
The government’s ambitious project, bullet train, has kicked up a row. At a time when a majority of Indian population lives below the poverty line and deaths by malnutrition is plenty; when farmers commit suicide in alarming numbers; when the national literacy rate has not yet reached 100 per cent and when the country is plagued by innumerable problems—the dearth of food and safe drinking water, unavailability of basic education for children and appalling health care system, how can ordinary citizens be expected to avail bullet train services? It’s far from feasible.
Climate summit comes and goes, but can we protect the world from the devastating impact of climate change?
Those who observed the hustle and bustle of world leaders in Paris summit may have missed the minutiae of deals which were hammered out late into the night.
Despite the leaders’ bravados and platitudes, what mattered most in the summit are the countries’ interests. I mean the geo-political interests of the governments.
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