Cometh The Blessed Month

Reading Time: 8 minutes
Alhamdulillah, the sun of the blessed month of Ramadhan has beamed on us once again. The month that brings with it abundant blessings, copious rewards and abounding favours of Allah (سبحانہوتعالیٰ).  In Islamic calendar, this month of Ramadhan has been set apart exclusively for Ibadah (prayer). For this purpose, unlike normal days, decks are cleared and hindrances removed in this month by Allah (سبحانہوتعالیٰ) to create favourable atmosphere and ambience facilitating easy and smooth indulgence with prayer by opening the gate of the Paradise, closing the door of the Hell and fettering the Satan (Bukhari – 1899). On the other hand, the rewards for prayers are made manifold.  As the holy month progresses, the rain of blessings, bounties, favours and rewards becomes heavier and heavier and ascends to its peak in its last ten days.

THE LOOMING PENSION CRISIS States want to revert to the Old Pension Scheme

Reading Time: 6 minutes
Arshad Shaikh examines the recent clamour by different state governments to revert to the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) from the current National Pension Scheme (NPS). The subject of pensions offered to retired government employees has brought forth many questions – who should fund pensions and why? Why was the NPS introduced? Are governments unable to afford pensions? If so, how are state governments promising the scrapping of NPS and returning to the OPS?

ECONOMIC RECOVERY INCOMPLETE MGNREGA allocation slashed, PLFS data disappointing

Reading Time: 5 minutes
Arshad Shaikh studies the reduced allocation for MGNREGA in the Budget and the recently released PLFS numbers. Contrary to the government’s position that the status of our economy has reached the stage of “recovery complete”, it appears that we are still experiencing significant rural distress. A major challenge for our policymakers is to generate enough jobs for our youth and control inflation. However, those who govern us seem to be fixated only on growth numbers and bloating the size of the economy. The data on unemployment is not pleasant, and the lack of a “jobs policy” makes those numbers gloomier.

China Sponsored Saudi-Iran Détente Would it really reduce the heat?

Posted on
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Israel was hoping to normalise relations with Saudi Arabia. This is after it has already normalised relations with the UAE and Bahrain. It wanted to reinforce Iran’s isolation and build a regional defence structure against it. But it is not clear now that Riyadh would jeopardise its agreement with Tehran by cooperating with the latter’s historical enemy.

HWF Transforms Lives of Marginalised Students and Orphans

Posted on
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Human Welfare Foundation (HWF) under Vision 26 programme awarded scholarships with cheques to 140 meritorious students from weaker and marginalised sections and orphans to transform their lives and in return to contribute to the society, community and nation building at a programme held at the India Islamic Cultural Centre, New Delhi on March 18.

CRACKS IN THE BANKING SYSTEM Silicon Valley Bank collapse raises troubling questions

Posted on
Reading Time: 6 minutes
Arshad Shaikh studies the recent collapse of the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) in America.  The spectacular failure of the 16th largest bank in the United States represents a systemic failure of the banking system. While analysts and media pundits debate the bank’s over-reliance on its held-to-maturity (HTM) portfolio, the lack of regulatory oversight, moral hazard and the tightening monetary policy by the Fed, very little is being said about the concept of conventional banking and the design of the global financial system. The American administration is intervening aggressively to avoid contagion and restore confidence in the depositors and investor community. However, the cracks in the banking system are openly visible and only its complete overhaul can prevent an impending apocalypse.

Same-Sex Marriages in News Again, Waiting for SC Nod Health and Peace watching anxiously

Posted on
Reading Time: 12 minutes
As the Apex Court is all set to pronounce judgement ona petition which wants the court to declare same-sex marriages legal,Dr. Javed Jamildelves deep into the havoc and chaos the so-called ‘sex revolution’ has created and can create in society, the loss it has caused and the danger it poses to human health. He hopes that the Union Government would forcefully present its case against same sex marriages, and the Court would decide the case purely on the basis of the highly dangerous consequences of this perversion on life, family peace and social order rather than on the basis of the mischievous arguments based on the concept of Freedom of Choice advanced by the forces of economics just for the interests of the market.

New Arrivals