The Subcontinental Menu

Is your name on the list? If so, God doesn바카라�t want to see you, sorry. A blacklist of names has appeared on the walls of a temple in Kalik village in Jaleswar block, Balasore, Odisha. The people included are members of five families, who reportedly refused to pay up when the village committee solicited donations for the 바카라�Patta Parba바카라� festival. The committee was demanding a 바카라�high amount바카라� which the families decl­ined to give바카라�and were then denied entry to the temple for their transgression.  In a complaint with the police, the families alleged that their 바카라�puja thalis바카라� were thrown out when they tried to worship, with one complainant saying that his brother and sister-in-law had been 바카라�manhandled and assaulted바카라� when they went to the temple. The police have reportedly registered a case against two youths.

Six Inches, No Less

Tom (from Tom and Jerry), wearing a pair of envy-tinted glasses, peers suspiciously over his shoulder as he crouches on a chair, one hand holding the receiver of a telephone labelled 바카라�Bahria University바카라�; the other poised to dial. In the next scene, his suspicions confirmed, Tom is dialling away. This image macro  features in one of many social media posts mocking the Islamabad-based university (with campuses in Karachi and Lahore too) for its recent directive that male and female students should keep a minimum distance of six inches from each other바카라�or face a fine.  In addition to ridicule, it has drawn criticism from the nation바카라�s Universities Staff Associations, but Bahria바카라�s resolve is unshaken; its PRO says 바카라�Touching of men and women cannot be allowed openly.바카라�

Unofficial Watchdogs

The dogs of rural Andhra Pradesh are zealous in per­forming their duty of aid to the civil power. Large police stations in the countryside and on the outskirts of cities (where policemen stay in barracks), which face threats from mobs and militants, have been encouraging stray dogs to hang around the premises to warn of intruders, especially at night. The practice was int­roduced by former DGP Swaranjit Sen after a couple of instances of such dogs thwarting extremist attacks by alerting sentries with their barking. According to one SI, 바카라�Food prepared for the policemen is also given to the dogs,바카라� enticing them to stay around. Although this is no longer officially sanctioned, as CCTV cameras have now been installed in the stations for sec­urity purposes, many stations still swear by it, citing instan­ces where the dogs picked out intruders in pitch blackness.

The Other Kind of Parcel

As you sit at your desk, typing and probably straining your back, hope approaches in the form of a dabbawala. Has he brought your lunch, you wonder, mouth watering at the prospect.  But no, you deflate like a disappointed balloon as you realise it바카라�s only a parcel. Such things may begin to happen soon, as Mumbai바카라�s dabba­walas are in the late stages of talks to start a parcel delivery and courier service. 바카라�The main aim of this project is to increase members바카라� income. In their free time, they can opt for this and we can deliver in the shortest possible time compared to firms involved in this sector,바카라� Mumbai Dabbawala Association spokesperson Subhash Talekar said.  The deal is to be finalised soon, after a few small iss­ues are discussed with the members.

To The Batcave!

Said the caped crusader to the boy wonder, but that바카라�s not the story here. Bamuni hill, near Nagaon in Assam, has a cave called 바카라�Baduli Karang바카라� (bat cave)바카라�as it contains colonies of insectivorous and fruit bats. An old site of worship, its legends include a story of an ascetic held in a kingdom of women and rescued by his disciple, whose curse turned the women into bats. The tale had died out by the 21st century, when a government servant,  Abdur Rahman, une­­arthed old records, leading locals to build a temple at the cave바카라�s entrance.  The place now welcomes devotees on special occasions.

Millions In Memoriam

The Buddhist monk Maduluwave Sobitha Thero was a leader of the successful campaign to defeat president Mahinda Rajapaksa in Sri Lanka바카라�s 2015 election by uniting the opp­­­osition behind Maithripala Sirisena. Now, India has donated Rs 12.7 crore to fund a housing village named after him. The 153-house pro­­ject in Elapathag­ama in Anuradhapura dis­­trict was inaugurated in a ceremony att­ended by Lankan ministers and India바카라�s acting high commissioner. The thero, who died in 2015, was also a leader of the movement against Ind­­ian intervention in Sri Lanka in the late 1980s.

Model Of A Modern Minister

Digitalise바카라�or perish, Nepal바카라�s prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli has told his cabinet colleagues. He delivered the ultimatum while add­ressing the 12th general convention of the Nepal National Teachers Org­anisation in Kathmandu recently. The country바카라�s PMO is to become paperless within six months, and members of the council of ministers will be expec­ted to use laptops during meetings.  During the first six months, befuddled politicos may turn to ass­istants for help, but, 바카라�We will bid farewell to any minister failing to operate laptops on their own after six months,바카라� Oli said. In mitigation, this will come with a generous severance package for the departing ministers바카라�a laptop.

Big Brother바카라�s Example

China바카라�s handling of the Doklam crisis seems to have left a deep impression on Pakistan.

China바카라�s leaders did not allow the standoff with India at the Bhutanese plateau to derail bilateral ties. Instead, they allowed engagement in trade and other areas to conti­nue and successfully brought down the temperature in ­co­operation with Indian leaders.

This development has visibly impressed Islamabad, which may use it as a model in improving bilateral ties with Delhi in future.

바카라�The Chinese examples of developing robust trade ties with India and not allowing the Doklam standoff to derail ties are instructive,바카라� says Dawn.

The Pakistani English daily argued in its editorial that 바카라�the growing economic and military strength of South and West Asia and of regional countries should be seen as an opportunity for engagement for Pakistan just as China has done.바카라�

Interestingly, when Chinese President Jiang Zemin gave similar counsel to Pakistan in the mid-1990s about putting the Kashmir issue on the backburner and allowing ties with India to improve through trade, Pakistan strongly resisted his advice.

Much of this may have stemmed from the backing Pakistan enjoyed from the United States in those days, and also from Washington바카라�s interest in keeping the Kashmir pot boiling.

But now, things have changed drastically. Not only is Pakistan in the USA바카라�s bad books for its failure to take meaningful action against terrorists based on its own soil, its close ally China is also growing tired of defending Pakistan on the issue of terrorism.

Thus, at a time when Pakistan is facing isolation internationally, China is its only backer. The $60 billion China바카라�Pakistan Economic Corridor, part of China바카라�s Belt and Road Initiative, is the biggest foreign investment in Pakistan. In general, the Pakistani economy depends heavily on Chinese investment at a time when the US has drastically cut down on military and other aid. Therefore, unlike in the past, it will be hard for Pakistan to ignore Chinese advice.

With less than two months left before the crucial parliamentary elections Pakistan, observers feel that foreign policy will be an important and tricky area to handle for the new government. They feel that, whichever party comes to power, it will have to devote a lot of time to formulating a cogent foreign policy.

Illustrations by Sajith Kumar