Columnist-M.S.Shanker

More Clarity, Less Cynicism

It is time the habitual naysayers stopped inventing bizarre and illogical questions every time Bharat’s economy produces a positive number. For far too long, the country’s economic progress has been viewed through a political lens. If GDP projections are encouraging, they are questioned. If growth outpaces expectations, the numbers are suspected. If international institutions endorse…

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Columnist-M.S.Shanker

Bharat’s Eye in the Sky

In the quiet hours before dawn on September 4, 2026, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) did more than send another rocket into the skies over Sriharikota. With the successful launch of GSLV-F17 carrying the 2,367-kg EOS-05 satellite, Bharat demonstrated something far more consequential: the ability to place a sophisticated Earth-observation spacecraft into a geosynchronous…

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Columnist-M.S.Shanker

CAD Lesson to Opposition

There is nothing wrong with questioning the government. In a democracy, scrutiny is not only legitimate but necessary. But when political opposition turns into a reflexive rejection of every piece of good economic news, it ceases to be scrutiny and begins to undermine confidence in the very nation whose governance they aspire to control. The…

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Columnist-M.S.Shanker

Pakistan’s Growing Frustration

Pakistan continues to crib, sulk and complain. Governments and generals may change, slogans may change, but one habit remains constant: blaming Bharat for Pakistan’s own failures and trying to convince the world that Pakistan remains a power to be reckoned with. The reality is far less flattering. Pakistan is economically fragile, politically unstable and increasingly…

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Columnist-M.S.Shanker

Amazing, but true

For years, a section of the Western media seemed almost incapable of writing about Narendra Modi or his government without seasoning the story with predictable doses of cynicism, criticism and, at times, outright disdain. Bharat’s economic rise was questioned, its democratic credentials were repeatedly put under the microscope and virtually every policy decision of the…

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Columnist-M.S.Shanker

The World Rewires

Why has the ongoing US-Iran confrontation suddenly gone strangely quiet? The thunderous rhetoric has faded. The threats have softened. Washington is no longer shouting from the rooftops, while Iran’s spiritual and political leadership appears equally reluctant to keep the microphone switched on. What happened? The simple answer is that geopolitics is not cricket. There are…

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Columnist-M.S.Shanker

Well Done, Bharat

When disaster strikes a neighbour, there are two kinds of countries: those that calculate the diplomatic advantage and those that simply ask, “How can we help?” Bharat has traditionally belonged to the second category—and its swift response to the catastrophic floods in Nepal is a reminder of what genuine neighbourhood solidarity should look like. The…

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Columnist-M.S.Shanker

Congress Rattled, Forces Targeted

The Congress party appears to have discovered a new national obsession: demanding explanations for what the Indian armed forces may or may not have done during Operation Sindoor. Its latest target is former Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, whose off-the-cuff observation about the possibility of a Bharatiya drone striking the Kiran Hills area…

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