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NEW DELHI : Former IPS official M L Kumawat, who was special secretary (internal security) in the Union home ministry during the 26/11 attacks, has contested claims made in the foreign media that Indian intelligence agencies were tracking Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) communications head and 26/11 accused Zarar Shah, before the Mumbai attacks.  “The point made in the investigative report by New York Times, ProPublica and the PBS series ‘Frontline’ that Zarar Shah’s computer activity was under the surveillance of an Indian intelligence agency prior to 26/11 attacks, is not correct,” Kumawat told TOI on Tuesday. According to him, the only prior intelligence India had about the LeT’s plans to attack iconic buildings in Mumbai, including Taj hotel and Jewish facilities, was a US alert dated September 24. “It was forwarded to the Maharashtra government, which stepped up security at the identified targets but somehow failed to maintain the same until November,” said the official. ...

1) Contradictory views on industrialisation held by Gandhi and ‘Bharat-Ratna’ Mokshagundam Vishweshwaraiya ! Gandhiji used to say, “If you opt for industrialisation, you will perish !” whereas recipient of ‘Bharat-Ratna’ award, able engineer M. Vishweshwaraiya had declared, “If you don’t go for Industrialization, you will perish !” Both were right; one gave more importance to human values and the other to physical, materialistic development ! 2) India should be leading in every field like Industrialization; but it should not sacrifice eternal values of life and culture, was the opinion of Swami Vivekananda. 3) Balance achieved by Swami Vivekananda between eternal culture and materialistic development ! Views of Gandhiji and Vishweshwaraiya, which appear contradictory, were coordinated and balanced by Swami Vivekananda. Swami Vivekananda had realised that for all-round growth of the country, both were necessary and he used to say, “Today, we need...

A natural medicine for cancer, cholesterol, diabetes, inflammation, IBS, and other health conditions Aloe vera has been one of the most important plants used in folk medicine. The Egyptians referred to aloe as the "plant of immortality" and included it among the funerary gifts buried with the pharaohs. The healing benefits of aloe were recognized in the anc ient Indian, Chinese, Greek, and Roman civilizations. It is traditionally used to heal wounds, relieve itching and swelling, and is known for its anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties . Aloe Vera, or Ghrit Kumari in Sanskrit, is a member of the lily family and is very cactus-like in its characteristics. It is one to two feet tall; and its leaves are succulent, broad at the base and pointed at the tips, with spines along the edges. These fat leaves contain the clear healing gel that is 96% water. The other four percent contains 75 known substances including Vitamins A, B, C, E, calcium, amino acids for protein...

Why I am a Hindu...  An American girl was sitting on the right side, near window seat. It indeed was a long journey – it would take nearly seven hours! I was surprised to see the young girl reading a Bible – unusual of young Americans! (Later I came to know that September 11 has changed mind-set of lot of US citizens. They suddenly turned religious, it seemed.) After some time she smiled and we had few acquaintances talk. I told her that I am from India. Then suddenly the girl asked: “What’s your faith?” “What?” I didn’t understand the question. “I mean, what’s your religion? Are you a Christian? Or a Muslim?” “No!” I replied, “I am neither Christian nor Muslim”. Apparently she appeared shocked to listen to that. “Then who are you…?” “I am a Hindu”, I said. She looked at me as if she is seeing a caged animal. She could not understand what I was talking about. A common man in Europe or US know about Christianity and Islam, as they are the leading religions of the world...

“All men dream,” said T. E. Lawrence, “but not equally.” Artistic, introspective and questioning, even as a child it was clear to those around me that I was, in Lawrence’s terminology, a “dreamer of the day.” I disliked what I regarded as the shallow materialism and trivial ways people interacted in the West. But above everything else, I deplored groupthink. It was the unknown, new ideas, different notions about how to live that attracted me. Already , at sixteen, I had become a vegetarian. I loathed the idea of eating animals, though it also enabled me to avoid the worst if British cuisine. I was also interested in spirituality, though I knew little about it. I meditated (or tried to, at least) for the first time at the age of fifteen. At seventeen  I started making a more serious study of spirituality, mysticism, the esoteric and religion, with my reading mixing serious and scholarly books with more popular and no doubt somewhat superficial books on these subjects. I al...

SWASTIKA EXPLAINED:  The Swastika is a holy sign and symbol from thousands of years ago. Practically, the only symbol that is more important in the Vedic tradition is the Sanskrit Om Symbol. It is an ancient symbol and has been found on sculptures from the early excavations of Mohenjo-Daro. "Beyond its certain presence in the "proto-writing" symbol systems emerging in the Neolithic period (9500 BC), nothing certain is known about the symbol's origin." Some historians also be lieve that ancient forts were built in the shape that closely resembled the Swastika for reasons of defense because it would be difficult for an enemy to invade all parts of a fort in this shape. Unfortunately, in the West, it has a negative connotation because of its use by the Nazis from 1935. At that time it was seen as a black cross on a white circle, and now, amongst some sections of society, it is viewed as a symbol that represents a radical perspective. But the real meaning of th...

More than a week ago when the nation was celebrating the success of the Mangalayan project, senior journalist Nikhil Wagle tweeted thus: The most obvious first question: Is it a crime for scientists to visit temples and to practice their faith?  Is bestowing honors to Balaji before Mangalyaan’s success equal to scoffing at rational enquiry which is the edifice of science research?  I don’t remember any ISRO scientist claiming that it was Balaji who put the space project to action so why the gibe? The point made by Wagle and many self-proclaimed rationalists and progressives is that Indians should not stick to their past heritage. This scientific temper business was initiated by the pioneer of Indian secularism, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru as claimed in this piece . It is a known fact that Nehru was hugely influenced by ‘Fabian Socialism’ and intellectuals from the erstwhile Union of Socialist Soviet Republic. Following Mangalyaan’s success, many self-proclaime...