By Raqif Makhdoomi*  The political atmosphere in Jammu and Kashmir is charged. While Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was occupied running a marathon alongside his MLAs, a quiet but consequential controversy was unfolding — one that deserves more scrutiny than it has received.

By Mohd Ziyauallah Khan*  The 2026 World Press Freedom Index , recently released by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), delivers a sobering verdict on the health of the world’s largest democracy: India has slipped to 157th out of 180 countries. This six-place drop from its 151st position in 2025 is not merely a statistical fluctuation; it is a signal of a deepening systemic crisis. 

By Bharat Dogra  ​New reports from Friends of the Earth and Sustainable Pulse have sounded the alarm regarding the escalating risks of Genetically Modified (GM) crops following the U.S. approval of GMO wheat. While hundreds of scientists and research papers have already documented the multifaceted risks GM technology poses to agriculture, health, and the environment, there was—until now—a sense of relief that major global staples had remained largely untouched.

By Bharat Dogra   ​The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), developed by the United Nations and international aid agencies, provides a standardized "litmus test" for global hunger . By categorizing food security from Stressed (Phase 2) to Catastrophic (Phase 5), the IPC offers a sobering roadmap of where human life is most at risk. Currently, global figures are staggering: 153 million people reside in Phase 3 or above, requiring urgent intervention to prevent mass starvation.

By Vijay Prashad   In February 2008, beneath the harsh afternoon sun of Accra, US President George W. Bush stood before a small gathering of journalists and dismissed swirling rumors with a chuckle. The United States, he claimed, had no intention of building military bases in Africa. “That’s baloney,” he said. The casual, dismissive word lingered,as such words often do when spoken from the heights of power. His comment was meant to close the matter, but history, as always, does not obey such instructions.

By Harsh Thakor*  This is about Alexandra Mikhailovna Kollontai , who died in Moscow at the age of 80 in  1952 , closing a chapter on one of the most remarkable feminist pioneers of the 20th century. Her journey spanned the twilight of the Russian Empire, the upheaval of revolution, and decades of service within the Soviet state. Remembered as a Bolshevik leader , she was also an originator of Marxist feminism , an advocate of sexual liberation, and one of the first women in history to serve as a cabinet minister and ambassador.