Newspaper Must Read Articles of The Day– 15 May 2015

The Hindu

National

• Free speech is not an absolute right: SC – Poetic licence does not mean having nationally revered figures like Mahatma Gandhi mouth obscene words, observes SC.

• India keen on Chinese knowhow – The Indian side is looking for a deeper collaboration with China in infrastructure development.

• Goce gravity boost to geothermal hunt –  Info about variations in gravity across the planet can help find promising locations where sub-surface heat can be exploited to generate electricity.

• Budget Session most productive in 15 years – The recently concluded Budget Session of Parliament was the most productive session in 15 years, says PRS Legislative Research.

• The economy is recovering, we are in a positive zone – As revenues increase, I would like to earmark expenditure for rural infrastructure and strengthening of social sector schemes, says Jaitley.

• Academics oppose changes in higher education –  Standardised syllabi would lead to lack of academic rigour and originality, says Romila Thapar.

International

• Bill against NSA spying passed – The bill seeks to protect American citizens from bulk govt surveillance.

• Overture to Tamils: No more ‘Victory Day’ – The Sri Lankan govt has announced that May 19, regarded as Victory Day for the last five years to mark the LTTE’s defeat, would no longer be observed so.

• Anti-terror arrests in U.K. hit record high – Terror-related arrests in Britain has hit record high levels last year with an arrest almost every day, says Scotland Yard.

• Japan: military expansion approved –  Japan’s has approved bills bolstering the role and scope of the military, as the pacifist country redefines its position in the increasingly roiled Asia-Pacific region.

• Qataris elect two women for first time – Qataris have for the first time voted two women in to the Gulf emirate’s only directly elected body, the Central Municipal Council.

Business

• Yashwant Sinha pushes for a big rate cut -Former FM Yashwant Sinha has made a strong case for a hefty 150 points interest rate cut by the RBI at one go, to ensure the revival of investment in the country.

• E-commerce: demand for parity between online and offline FDI policy – There should be a parity between online and offline retail policy, says stakeholders.

Opinion-Editorial

• Manoeuvres on the Syrian chessboard – Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the US are unwilling to digest that the conflict in Syria, as in Yemen, advantages al-Qaeda and ISIS, argues Vijay Prashad.

• Not business as usual – The govt got a great deal of legislative work done during the Budget session. But the message that emerged from the Budget session was of a government on the back foot, says the editorial.

• Strategy shift – The string of attacks carried out by Maoists recently, point to the current strategy and intent, as well as determination, of the Maoists, points out the article.

Indian Express

 Editorials & Columns

• Back in black – New law is welcome, but more effective solutions to tax evasion lie in GST and in reform of political funding, argues the editorial.

• Photo finish – SC has pruned politicians’ mugshots from govt advertisements. But is this really within the ambit of its mandate? asks the editorial.

• The foreign threat – On Govt action against NGOs: The Govt has merely called to account those NGOs that have violated Indian law, writes Madhu Purnima Kishwar.

• Raising our policy sights – Why Indian policy making must aim for capital account convertibility? Yoginder K Alagh has an answer.

LiveMint

• Six charts that explain India’s social protection challenge – India is a global outlier on social protection, reveals Roshan Kishore and  Dipti Jain.

• Safeguarding the open Internet – The view that govts should stay out of the way ignores the role that countries are already playing on the Internet, often secretly, opines Marietje Schaake.