A select list of stories to read before you start your day.
India cuts off UN panel after Jammu & Kashmir report
Reacting angrily to a submission from the Geneva-based Human Rights Council (HRC) on the alleged violations in Jammu and Kashmir, India has informed the United Nations body that it will no longer entertain any communication with the HRC’s Special Rapporteurs on its report.
Leadership sweepstakes and the Modi factor
Is the 2019 Lok Sabha election essentially a leadership race? The CSDS-Lokniti post-poll data seems to indicate that while leadership was a factor, it was not the most critical issue that swayed electoral preferences.
During the campaign, it was patently visible that the BJP was taking every effort to make it a presidential-style poll, with their candidates seeking votes in the name of the Prime Minister.
After elections, oil marketing firms hike petrol, diesel prices
State-owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) increased prices of petrol and diesel across the country on Monday, a day after the last phase of Lok Sabha polls concluded. This could mark the beginning of a rising trend in fuel prices as they are once again aligned to the rising global oil prices.
Opposition takes stock after exit polls favour NDA
A day after exit polls gave a clear mandate to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Opposition leaders on Monday took stock of the political situation.
While Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav called on Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati at her residence in Lucknow, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader N. Chandrababu Naidu headed to Kolkata for a meeting with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Business | India unlikely to give additional seats to foreign airlines
India is unlikely to grant additional seats to foreign carriers, over and above the numbers agreed to under bilateral pacts, even though Indian expatriates in some of these countries are facing the prospect of having to pay sharply steeper airfares during the peak travel season this year following the grounding of Jet Airways.
Science | India adopts new standards for measuring units kilogram, kelvin, mole & ampere
With the definition of the ‘kilogram’ getting a global, technical makeover, textbooks — from those used in schools to ones recommended by engineering colleges in India — are set to undergo an update. Until Monday, the kilogram derived its provenance from the weight of a block of a platinum-iridium alloy housed at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures in France.