All stories by RASHME SEHGAL
164 people have died of cold in Delhi so far
Rediff.com25 Jan 2016In the 66th year of the Indian Republic, eight people died of cold every night in the nation's capital.
Druggies in Punjab spend Rs 2.5 crore a day on drugs!
Rediff.com20 Jan 20162.3 million people are opioid-dependent. 860,000 people are opioid users. 123,000 people are heroin-dependent.
'The Akalis have run Punjab to the ground'
Rediff.com18 Jan 2016'They are completely corrupt and have introduced a mafia culture which has seen one family control the entire resources of the state.'
'The Ganga is in ICU'
Rediff.com13 Jan 2016'One per cent of wealthy people have been handed over 99 per cent of our nation's resources. The rest are mute, helpless and very frightened spectators to this loot.'
'Modi's Pakistan policy shows his weakness'
Rediff.com7 Jan 2016'We cannot forget that Pakistan is a criminal State, it is a rogue State and yet we want oil pipelines to go through their State, we want to have people-to-people contact, want to increase trade with them.' 'When Modi was prime minister-elect, he said there can be no dialogue in the face of bombs and bullets. After becoming prime minister, he is saying talks will continue. Was he then misleading the public then or is he misleading the public now?' 'Nobody goes around abusing China. The fact is China is a great power. I do not think India is a great power. People spit on our face and we still go grovelling before them.'
Delhi's odd-even formula: The challenges ahead
Rediff.com29 Dec 2015Similar traffic restrictions in other cities did not see a significant improvement in air quality only because car owners begin making more trips during their unrestricted periods. The other apprehension, as seen in other cities, is that residents have bought secondhand cars, using the other number plate so that they can continue to drive to their work place, thereby defeating the very purpose of this scheme.
Will new Juvenile law reduce crime?
Rediff.com22 Dec 2015'Given that 95 per cent of rapes are committed by adults and only 5 per cent by juveniles, these 95 per cent of rapes will continue to take place, so what women's safety are we talking about?'
Hepatitis: India's silent killer
Rediff.com21 Dec 2015The silent epidemic is playing havoc with the lives of millions of Indians. But those suffering from this chronic disease remain in the dark about their infection.
The man who led Chennai's rescue effort
Rediff.com17 Dec 2015'Coordination between our 50 teams, each with a strength of 45 men, played a key role in rescuing flood-affected people in Chennai. In all, we succeeded in rescuing over 20,000 people.'
Has India washed its hands of the 39 hostages in Iraq?
Rediff.com14 Dec 2015The MEA insists that as far as the government is concerned the hostages are alive. But the families have grown tired of these assurances. They are clueless and so it seems is the government. Rashme Sehgal reports.
'The Kargil war was my classroom'
Rediff.com7 Dec 2015'I like to see myself as a troll-slayer and I have realised the best way to do that is to ignore them. Nothing bothers them more,' Barkha Dutt tells Rashme Sehgal.
Will Railways' ChildLine scheme make runaway children safer?
Rediff.com7 Dec 2015Are the ChildLine booths for runaway children an attempt to sanitise Indian railway stations or a genuine effort for the protection of 'railway kids'?
Prenups may become mandatory for all Indian marriages
Rediff.com1 Dec 2015Is Minister of Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi opening another minefield with the introduction of mandatory pre-nuptial agreement before marriage or will this proposed legislation help streamline the dissolution process of a marriage given the spiralling divorce rates in our country? Rashme Sehgal speaks to lawyers on the issue.
Bihar performance could fix Congress fund crunch
Rediff.com25 Nov 2015While its performance in Bihar, has boosted fund collections, corporate contributors are still waiting to see its performances in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal before committing funds to the Congress.
Beware! Your teen could be in danger
Rediff.com21 Nov 2015If your child has access to the Internet, they could find themselves in trouble.
'RSS is hardly in a position to call JNU anti-national'
Rediff.com18 Nov 2015'None of our critics have spoken about JNU's positive contributions. Instead, we are being labelled anti-national. A whole host of BJP leaders are products of JNU including Nirmala Sitharaman.'
'Modi said fighting climate change improves life of citizens'
Rediff.com14 Nov 2015'The Paris Conference is a decisive meeting on climate change.' 'Negotiating an agreement between 196 countries is indeed a challenge.' 'If we go beyond 2°C, the consequences will be extremely difficult to deal with.'The poor are the most vulnerable to the impact of climate change.'
Can Kejriwal soften Modi and Jung?
Rediff.com29 Oct 2015With the tide of public disillusionment rising against his government, Arvind Kejriwal is trying at least publicly to extend the olive branch to both Narendra Modi and Najeeb Jung. Privately, he has confided to his confidantes that much as he dislikes it, he must do his best to soften these two reigning deities.
One last push to save the Yamuna
Rediff.com20 Oct 2015Union Minister for Water Resources Uma Bharati recently reiterated her commitment towards making the Yamuna Shuddikaran Abhiyan a success but said little else. It is obvious that in comparison to the Ganga about which she waxes eloquent at the drop of a hat, her treatment towards Yamuna can at best be described as step-motherly. Rashme Sehgal reports on efforts to save the river.
Nitin Gadkari on how he will transform India
Rediff.com16 Oct 2015'Earlier compensation was less, but we have increased compensation four fold. As a result, farmers want to give up their land.' 'Infrastructure projects will create 50 lakh jobs. If today we are building 14 km of road per day, by next March, we hope to take it up to 30 km. My own hope is we can take it to 100 km per day.' 'The government's ambitious Sagarmala project aims to develop port infrastructure along the country's 7,500 km coastline. The project includes modernisation of our ports and islands, setting up of coastal economic zones, new major ports and fish harbours.'