Fresh grenade explosions near the Victory Monument protest site that wounded 28 people on Sunday are the latest sign of a serious escalation of violence that may force invocation of the emergency law. -
Bangkok Post
Singapore has started to see some progress in its efforts to raise productivity, but the country is still in the early to middle stages of its economic restructuring and so it has to press on with its efforts, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam has said. The upcoming Budget, which he will unveil on Feb 21, will therefore include more measures to help companies, especially support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), to stay the course, he added.
Straits Times
Narendra Modi on Sunday sought to change the narrative for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls by asserting his OBC background, and saying that Congress failed to name its PM candidate because Rahul Gandhi would have considered it beneath his dignity to be pitted against a “backward” of humble origins who would hawk tea in trains and was brought up by a mother who would wash utensils and fill water in neigbours’ homes. Terming the Nehru-Gandhi family elitist and anti-OBC, Modi said their feudal mindset, casteist prejudices and sense of uniqueness, apart from Sonia Gandhi’s decision not to “sacrifice” the career of her son fearing certain defeat, were the real reasons why Congress did not project Rahul as the PM candidate despite clamour from the cadre. Modi levelled “casteist” charge against the Congress leadership, which also marked an aggressive outreach towards the politically crucial constituency, while addressing members of BJP’s national council. Iimes of India
There is a glimmer of hope for abandoned babies to get out of orphanages and move into loving homes. But for abandoned senior citizens, it’s mostly despair. The Star
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