COLUMNS
T V R Shenoy: Why did Priyanka Vadra meet Nalini Sriharan?
It is a bit strange that Rajiv Gandhi's daughter received permission to do precisely what her great-grandfather had denied to the Mahatma's son.

C Uday Bhaskar: Iran, India and the 'great game'
Central Asia with Iran as a major gas supplier is the arena where the new 'great-game' is being played out and China, India and Japan are all seeking to protect their respective energy interests for the medium term -- and pipeline politics is the new instrumentality.

B Raman: Implications of Olympic flame on Everest
The Chinese have sought to counter the soft power of the Western media through the soft power of the patriotic response of the Chinese people and the overseas Chinese Diaspora.

Gurmeet Kanwal: India should fear China's defence spending
Due to China's vigorous military modernisation drive, the military gap between India and China is growing every year. China is now capable of inducting large numbers of troops into Tibet in a time frame that is likely to unhinge Indian war plans.

B Raman: Prachanda: From radical Maoist to lovable mascot
There are two possible scenarios -- these fears turn out to be baseless and Prachanda turns out to be a genuine democrat and a genuine friend of India or Prachanda after the elections turns out to be different from Prachanda before the elections and takes Nepal on a road, which would be detrimental to our national interests. While hoping for the first scenario, we must be prepared for the second.

INTERVIEWS
'Dangers of ignoring India's poor are greater'
Author Arvind Adiga discusses his new book and describes how he got the idea for it.

'JD-S has given K'taka some of the best CMs'
'There is a certain amount of respect for the JD-S as compared to the other parties. The plus point for the JD-S is the rule of H D Kumaraswamy as chief minister for 20 months. He is considered as the best chief minister of Karnataka till date.This will work in favour of the JD-S and thanks to this factor the party will earn a considerable number of votes.'

SPECIAL
The lobbies that matter in Karnataka
It is election time in Karnataka and even as the political parties are trying to sort out their differences regarding the distribution of tickets, the various lobbies in Karnataka have already sprung into action.

'We adjust and the Ganga flows on'
Shobhaa De feels India is going through a Golden Era better and more glorious than the days India saw under Emperor Ashoka.

IMAGES
Decoding Michelangelo at Sistine Chapel
Did Michelangelo embed secret messages in his frescos at the Sistine Chapel in Vatican?

NASA chief on India's moon mission
NASA Administrator Dr Michael Griffin discusses India's moon mission with Managing Editor Aziz Haniffa.

On the campaign trail in Karnataka
Big-wigs hit the road to seek votes for their parties.

Out of Africa: How man came to India
Meet Virumandi, the descendent of the first group of migrants, who came out of Africa 70,000 years ago.

VIDEOS
Padma Bhushan for author Dominique Lapierre

Legalise our work, say sex workers

Chick of endangered vulture species born in Rajasthan

Iran for deeper bonds with India

20 feared killed in J&K landslide

Indian taxi drivers protest in Melbourne

Unique park with plants linked to zodiac signs

Left backs Prachanda on reviewing Indo-Nepal treaty

'India's time has come!'

Don't rush into N-deal, BJP tells UPA

J&K prepares for Darbar Move

Sonia Gandhi visits Nandigram

Congress gears up for Karnataka polls

PSLV-C9 launched into space

Karzai escapes 4th attempt on life

Victims' kin want Sarabjit hanged

Minority bashing must end: Muslims

Will Maya's magic work in K'taka?

J&K separatists may resume peace talks

Rahul takes on BJP in tribal belt

The privileged attempt to bridge social divides

PM upbeat about enhanced ties with Pak

Dalai Lama welcomes China's offer

Advani flays UPA

Image: BJP leader and MP Sushma Swaraj during an election campaign in Kodagu district.
Photograph: PTI Photo