Pairokar

  On February 12, Jantar Mantar in New Delhi served as a focal point for a major gathering as part of a nationwide general strike (Bharat Bandh). Unfortunately, the gathering drew fewer than 500 people. These people were presented as workers, but most were college students. The demonstration was organised by a joint platform of over 10 Central Trade Unions (CTUs), including CITU, AITUC, and INTUC, as well as the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM). This dismal demonstration by the Trade Unions further proves that workers are no longer interested in their tall talk, as the Unions have miserably failed to protect the interests of the working class in India. Things have also changed. There are now a negligible number of workers. Their way of working has changed. They have become habituated to the new facilities. Therefore, they cannot be herded like the workers of the eighties or even the nineties. The protesters called for the repeal of the four new labour codes, the restoration of MGNREGA ...

  The growth of responsible media is welcome; no other medium disseminates information or commentary with such speed. However, information circulated on these platforms must often be taken with a pinch of salt. Frequently, we are bombarded with fabricated narratives driven by purveyors with their own axes to grind. These individuals often fail to realise the damage they inflict on the credibility of information and the reputation of the media itself. The root of this anarchy is a lack of binding ethics or values. While self-regulation is often emphasised, it remains, in reality, a charade. Unlike traditional media, social media lacks a "gatekeeper," making it a double-edged weapon. Artificial Intelligence, otherwise immensely useful, has further empowered bad actors to distort facts and manufacture narratives that suit their agendas. Just today, we witnessed a prime example of this: a deluge of social media posts claiming that the West Bengal Chief Minister—a law graduate fro...

The new rules notified by the University Grants Commission (UGC) on 13 January 2026 have generated significant debate and criticism, particularly among some students from the general category. Several groups argued that the framework could unintentionally create perceptions of reverse discrimination. Protests were reported outside the UGC office in Delhi and in other parts of the country, led by organisations such as the “Savarna Sena.” Their principal concern was that the rules did not clearly specify a parallel grievance-reporting mechanism for general category students and might lead to an increase in complaints and administrative complications. The situation, however, stabilised after the Supreme Court granted an interim injunction. Critics contend that the rules appear to have been notified without sufficiently wide consultation or careful evaluation of their broader social and institutional impact. One major objection is the expansion of coverage to include additional OBC cat...