The viability of agri income tax
The new government has many burning issues to deal with. Some of these have been highlighted by the media and some by the politicians themselves. The budgetary constraint that is…
Municipal self-governance
In Pakistan, the poor are subjected to heavy and cruel taxation to finance the luxuries of militro-judicial-civil complex and politicians - who enjoy free or concessional perquisites, benefits, including expensive…
A fantastic dream
It was a pleasant sunny morning on May 18, 2013 when I found myself at the Ritter Ice Arena, attending the graduation ceremony of the Rochester Institute of Technology/National Technical…
Anger in Kashmir
ONCE again fear of the awkward looms in Kashmir. On Thursday India`s Border Security Force (BSF) opened indiscriminate fire upon a group of Kashmiris demonstrating in Gool village killing four…
Elizabeth L. Littlefield: a profile
Elizabeth L. Littlefield was appointed by President Obama as the President and CEO of OPIC, the US Government's Development Finance Institution. Operating in 105 countries, OPIC manages a $16 billion…
Finance Act 2013: Apathy of Parliament
The adoption of Finance Bill 2013 on 27 June 2013, with a number of amendments proposed on 24 June 2013, was a disgrace for the National Assembly. There was no…
iSpy with my little eye…
As we hit the pause button on the Snowden saga, it’s time to step back and look at its significance. While the revelations on the intrusive American PRISM programme, together…
Opening up the Muslim mind
The Council of Islamic Ideology has held that DNA tests as primary evidence are not acceptable in rape cases. This comes at a time when there is a dire need…
Knowledge society
Some years ago I came across an article that made an interesting observation about the pre-eminence of Islamic civilisations and how it is rooted in their ability to discover new…
Kashmir is ominously angry
The security bunkers that used to dot Srinagar’s streets for two decades have gone. The oppressive presence of armed security personnel has become less overwhelming. But the shadow of security…
