Author: Akanksha Badu

On 19th September 2024, Azerbaijani forces launched an operation in the Nagorno-Karabakh region claiming to conduct an anti-terror operation and demanding the exit of the ethnic Armenians from the region. Nagorno-Karabakh’s Historical Background In the pre-Soviet Era, the region acted as a meeting point for the Ottoman, Russian and Persian Empires given its strategic location. On the inclusion of the region into the Soviet Republic, it was made a part of Azerbaijan even though the majority population of the region was of Armenian ethnicity. In 1998, the Nagorno-Karabakh Oblast’s Council passed a resolution demanding to be integrated with Armenia. This…

According to reports, the Union Cabinet at a meeting, held on Monday, gave its nod to the Women’s Reservation Bill. Though the discussion of the same is nowhere mentioned in the agenda for the Parliament’s Special Session, the demand for the reservation of women has been lingering around, sometimes actively for the past 27 years now. The 108th Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2008 The reservation for women in the Parliament was first brought about by the Deve Gowda led United Front in 1996 but the bill was unable to pass. The Bill was again introduced by Dr Manmohan Singh in 2008…

Anjali Deswal and Vandna, two women in their 20s of the Surehti village of Jhajjar district of Haryana were killed by their parents on account of marrying a boy of another caste of the same village. The Indian Express dated 18 September 2024 shared a glimpse of what and when went down with the two girls, showing us the horrors that continue to plague the Indian society. Anjali and Vandna’s case is only one of many such cases. Honor Overtakes Women’s Life Khap is a term derived from the Saka language word “Khatrap” which means an area inhabited by a…

Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng has postponed the Trade Mission of Canada in Indian which was planned for the month of October, five days after the head of state of both the countries met on the sidelines of the G20 Summit. The cancellation, though no official reason has been given is based on the premise that Indian Prime Minister “snubbed” the Canadian PM, conducting only a short and informal meeting. The Popular Narrative It won’t come as a surprise to many Indians that Canada has the highest population of Sikhs outside their home state of Punjab given the constant association…

S. Krishnaveni, S. Ramya and Ranjitha will be the first female assistant priests at Sri Vaishnava temples of Tamil Nadu, following the Pancharathra agama. These women are the first three to have undergone the Bhattar training in the state of Tamil Nadu and will be completing their training at Archakar Training School run by the Sri Ranganathan Temple at Srirangam. Status of Women Priests in the Country Tamil Nadu was the latest addition to the list of states which allow women to be trained to become priests in temples. Kerela and Maharashtra are the two other states which allow women…

Monu Manesar, a Bajrang Dal member and a self- proclaimed cow vigilante was arrested on 12 September 2024 in Nuh district of Gurgaon and will be handed over to the Rajasthan Police. Allegations against Monu Manesar While the Haryana police arrested him for posting inflammatory and objectionable remarks on social media under an anonymous name, he has been known for his alleged notorious communal acts of killing all those who are involved in production and consumption of beef. FIRs filed against him have also accused him of instigating hatred between different religious communities and spreading communal feelings. The recent Nuh…

Northern Africa is facing spontaneous devastation with over 4000 people killed and about 12000 missing in Libya and Morocco combined as a result of flood and earthquake in these respective countries. Social Status of Libya Libya has been categorically infamous for its oil reserves. Its crude accounts for almost 97% of its GDP. The employment in the oil sector has brought out Libyans towards the urban area which is only 10% of the country , which lies bordered to the coast where 90% Libyans live concentrated, with a minority of them living in the desert. The governance of the country…

Amidst the victorious cheering for the passing of the New Delhi Declaration, on the sidelines of the G20 Summit, India, Italy, France, Germany, European Union, USA and Saudi Arabia signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the creation of an India-Middle East-Europe Corridor(IMEC), a rail and shipping network. The IMEC The negotiations for IMEC, according to experts, had begun back in May when the National Security Advisors of India, Saudi Arabia, USA and UAE had met in Riyadh. The project will be developed by the G7 Nations under the “Partnership for Global Infrastructure Investment” which is a fund created by the…

The G20 Summit being held in the National Capital of India on the 9th and 10th of September has engraved a historic success for itself with the passing of the New Delhi Declaration with a 100% consensus becoming proof of India’s successful abilities as a diplomat and its promising role as a potential world leader. What is the New Delhi Declaration? With the core ideology of “One Earth, One Family, one Future”, the Preamble of the Declaration projects the goals of attaining peace and prosperity for the planet and people, thus advocating inclusive growth through sustainable development. Divided into 10…

In response to the casteism allegations on IIT- Delhi, a caste-based survey which was circulated earlier this week in IIT-Delhi was withdrawn after students complained that the survey was irrelevant and insensitive. This survey was formulated by the Board for Student Publications. As per the authorities, they had asked the BSP to consult the SC/ST Cell of the Institute, however, they did not follow its instructions. Background to the Casteism Chaos at IITs In less than 2 months, two students of the Scheduled Caste community have committed suicide at IIT-Delhi. Since January 2024, 11 suicides have taken place across all…