'The three tycoons I deal with in the first chapter -- Ambani, Mallya and Adani -- in their own way represent the change that has come over India.' 'Of the three of them, Mallya is the most fun. He was terrific.' 'And I don't say that because I tell the story in the book of his golden toilet.'

"The RSS is trying to change the nature of India. Other parties haven't tried to capture India's institutions," he said.

'If India maintains the Constitutional set-up that its founders envisaged -- which is that it is a parliamentary democracy, with a broadly speaking market economy, in which all people are equal as everyone votes, in which the rights of minorities are respected -- that will be a great thing.' 'Not just for India. But for humanity.'

Rifleman Aurangzeb, who belonged to the 44 Rashtriya Rifles, was on way back home on June 14 to celebrate Eid when terrorists abducted him.

Expect Modi to speak about internal security, terrorism, agriculture, the Triple Talaq Bill, the SC/ST Bill and, of course, the controversial NRC.

'Our grandparents' generation knew one another.' 'In our generation, you could go a lifetime without meeting someone from the other country,' British Pakistani novelist Kamila Shamsie tells Rahul Jacob.

The Chinese have just one commander for all the forces confronting India. Commanders of all these forces answer to one man, and one headquarter. India, on the other hand, offers a diversity of options that is a military embarrassment in the 21st century. In Arunachal and Sikkim-Bhutan, the Eastern Army Commander is in charge. In the Uttarakhand (central) sector, it will be the Central Army Commander. The Himachal-Tibet border is the domain of the Western Army Commander. And all of Kashmir and Ladakh further on, the Northern Army's. Effectively, an array of at least eight 'three-star' commanders will be arrayed against one Chinese, says Shekhar Gupta.

'It is vital that objects such as the Harihara -- and collections from South Asia generally -- remain here,' the British Museum tells Vaihayasi Pande Daniel.

'My wife has done everything... She has had to give up a lot,' HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar tells Sahil Makkar.

All of the top news of the week gone by, in photos.

Welcoming fellow leaders including Macron and US President Donald Trump to a summit of the NATO defence alliance in Brussels, premier Charles Michel said the Western bloc must go on setting aside differences to protect each other.

'The brazen politics, in this series of bullying of AMU by functionaries of the Union and provincial governments, utterly disregarding the fact that the matter is sub judice, is quite obvious.' 'One needs to see through the desperate politics of the BJP which governs both Uttar Pradesh and the Centre, especially its woes over its Dalit support base,' says AMU Professor Mohammad Sajjad.

Today, it is modish to be part of a yoga class, to post stories on Instagram while striking an impressively complex asana in a bralette and crop-top paired with neon yoga pants, to bond over green tea and yoga bars after a strenuous session at the studio and have subscriptions to yoga studios, not ashrams, says Manavi Kapur.

National Geographic has announced the winning photos of its popular Travel Photographer of the Year 2018 photo contest. The grand prize was awarded to Japanese photographer Reiko Takahashi, who captured an underwater photo of a humpback whale calf's tail. The winning photo, titled "Mermaid," was selected from over 13,000 entries received this year. Describing the moment she captured the scene, she said: "It was a special scene for me, to be able to take a photo of the calf, completely relaxed in gentle waters." Scroll down to see the full selection of winners.

Increasingly isolated on the global stage, the World Cup has so far helped Vladimir Putin send a defiant message to his opponents that Russia is succeeding despite Western efforts to hold it back.

The Russian Football Union's anti-discrimination inspector has said the World Cup is a chance for Russia to show how open it is.

"The biggest challenge before us is that the 21st century belongs to Asia. But do we have this sentiment, I think that is the biggest challenge," he said.

'15, 17 years back we were not even in existence in the US. Today nearly 1/3 of prescriptions written comes from India.' 'India is showing that in a very competitive environment -- like the US and Europe -- our industry is doing very well.'

'With two nuclear neighbours, how likely is it for our armed forces to battle in a contaminated environment that could include nuclear, biological or chemical attacks by the adversary?' 'Are we prepared for the threat?' Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd) explains the meaning and significance of Operation Vijay Prahar.

We've already presented some of the stunning early entries to the 2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest in the Nature category and now, here are incredible portraits and action shots of people from around the world that have been submitted in the People category. As mentioned earlier, the grand-prize winner will be awarded $10,000 (Rs 6.67 lakh), will have their photo posted on the @NatGeoTravel Instagram account, as well as the bragging rights. Take a look and be amazed!

'The need of the hour is to build on the positives and control the negatives,' says Colonel (Dr) Anil A Athale (retd).

Modi and Shah can't afford to lose any of the 24 per cent Dalit vote of 2014, says Shekhar Gupta.

Ahead of the 2019 elections, the race for consolidating the Dalit vote-bank has intensified among all the political parties, more so in Uttar Pradesh, where the community comprises almost 21 per cent of the population.

Here are 5 BJP MPs who have taken up cudgels against their party leadership for its handling of Dalit issues.

What matters is the culture and the atmosphere of the workplace, and whether employees get treated fairly. 'It is also important for the employee to feel s/he is part of a winning team,' Credit Suisse's Mickey Doshi tells Niraj Bhatt.

Incidents of arson, firing and vandalism were reported from Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Punjab as protesters agitated against the dilution of the SC/ST Act.

Hyperbole by our ministers and a few saffronised scientists not only defames Newton and Einstein, but also mocks ancient India's achievements in mathematics, medicine and natural science, says Utkarsh Mishra.

Steve Smith has demanded his team's batsmen lift their output and score centuries against South Africa in the wake of their humbling six-wicket loss in the second Test at Port Elizabeth.

A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Tuesday

Mauritius beyond the beaches.

'There is no Buddha or Gandhi among countries, existing for the service of others; they all exist for the good of themselves.' 'For each country, its own interests should be paramount, and it is futile and churlish to expect China to be an exception to this rule,' says B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant and long-time China-watcher.

Despite being hailed as one of India's most progressive and most developed states, it is witnessing the fallout of lopsided progress.

Till recently there was no monument to the Maratha victory or the great Maratha General Mahadji Shinde. It was a defeat, such as never suffered by the British in India.

Kalvari underwent around 120 days of extensive sea trials and tests for various equipment and is expected to bolster India's maritime prowess.

'It is important to destroy, to undermine, to debunk the narrative of ISIS,' Olivier Roy -- one of the world's leading experts on radical Islam -- tells Rediff.com's Vaihayasi Pande Daniel in an exclusive interview.

It's been 100 years since Lenin and the Bolsheviks overthrew the government, and its legacy remains visible even today in the buildings and monuments scattered throughout St Petersburg.

Schools and colleges, closed since October 31, were shut on Saturday as well, while several universities postponed their exams.

Harrowing photos show mangled bikes scattered along a cycle path that runs parallel to the West Side Highway on the western edge of Manhattan. Other images show emergency services personnel bravely rushing to help the victims of the horrific attack.

The man behind Aligarh Muslim University 200 years on.

Jagmeet Singh, a 38-year-old Sikh, elected the leader of Canada's New Democratic Party, becoming the first non-white politician to head a major party in the country.