Counterview

By Rajiv Shah   Strange are the ways of Jio Fibre Service in Ahmedabad. On noticing for two consecutive days that there is a problem between the set top box and TV with HDMI connection getting snapped too frequently (see video below) we decided to ask to take the help of a Jio service engineer last Saturday to visit at our home.  Following a prompt but unresolved visit by a technician on Sunday, I got umpteen number of SMSes "rescheduling" visits. In between, I kept receiving SMSes claiming that the problem "has been solved", even I "didn't allow a visiting engineer to take photo", but the rescheduled visit never happened. But let me kick start from the beginning as to what happened and how Jio service appears to have gone to dogs. Following an online chat on Jio WhatsApp number on Saturday afternoon, we received an SMS at 1:48 pm stating, and I quote: "Dear Customer, Service request no SR00001V4POI has been raised in your account. You will receiv...

By Rajiv Shah  A Congressional Briefing on Capitol Hill, Washington DC, has taken strong exception to the Biden administration's decision to sell India reaper drones. Speaking on the occasion at the briefing, titled "US Arms Sales to India: The role of the US Congress," Human Rights Watch Asia advocacy director John Sifton criticized “bad optics” of the Biden administration’s intent to sell the Indian government 31 armed MQ-9 reaper drones with accompanying munitions. 

By Harsh Thakor*  With the numbers of the murdered in Gaza surpassing 28,000 people, Israel mercilessly conducted bombing to prepare for a genocidal attack on the displaced people in Rafah. Peoples of the world keep rose up like a spark turning into a prairie fire.  Several Arab capitals paid host to massive demonstrations in solidarity with the Gaza Strip and denouncing of the ongoing Israeli aggression. In Ramallah, Palestinians demonstrated in Al-Manara Square in downtown in protest against the ongoing Israeli war on the Gaza Strip. On the 3rd of February activists of Kampkomiteen took part in two demonstrations in Trondheim, Norway. In the first, it represented the labour movement and different solidarity organizations. After the rally, a march was held, in which slogans were raised such as “Intifada, intifada!”, “Occupation no more, open up the prison door!” and “Let the children live!” were shouted. In the evening, an action was staged outside a venue where the represent...

By Pranjal Pandey*  On February 8, 2024, Pakistan conducted its parliamentary elections with 44 political parties contesting for 265 seats in the National Assembly. This marked the 12th general election in the country since it gained independence 76 years ago.

By Vikas Parasram Meshram  If politics and other sensational things are ignored, it is unfortunate that the farmers who grow food for the country take to the streets for their demands. Although the Central and Haryana governments are showing strictness in view of the violent incidents and the Red Fort incident during the long-running farmers' agitation in 2020-21, erecting huge barricades and nailing the roads where the farmers are protesting cannot be said to be doing a good job for the farmers. 

By John P. Ruehl  Late 2023 marked a notable transformation in North Korea’s longstanding pursuit of peaceful reunification with South Korea after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un noted the failure of the policy in his end-of-year speech . This sentiment was reiterated during a January 15 meeting of North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA), where the country’s constitution was ordered to be rewritten to label South Korea as its “ principal adversary .” Subsequently, public symbols promoting peaceful reunification in North Korea were dismantled and references to it were deleted on state media outlets. Additionally, three inter-Korean cooperation organizations —the Korean People’s Cooperation Administration, Kumgangsan International Tourism Administration, and the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland—were abolished, accompanied by an increase in North Korean missile tests . Several North Korea experts, including former State Department official Robert L....

Counterview Desk  Top farmers' network, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) has claimed big success of Grameen Bharat Bandh and industrial /sectoral strikes, stating, the “struggle reflected anger of farmers, workers and rural people across India”, adding, the move on February 16 succeeded in bringing back peoples’ livelihood issues in the national agenda just ahead of the general election to the Lok Sabha.