Kashmiri whispers
It may finally amount to nothing more than gauging the direction of the wind, but there is a definite, and very rare, air of optimism on Kashmir this summer.



Open files policy
The crooked shadow of the Official Secrets Act 1923, that criminalises the divulgence of all official information to any person other than the person authorised to receive it, has long fallen on every aspect of government functioning.



Learning to live with loss
The daily news is usually full of stories about loss. Take this week's main stories. Drought in Rajasthan and Gujarat. Fire in Bharatpur. A family of four murdered by unknown assailants. A train crash in Indonesia.



Other headlines
Farooq's wooden spoon
A place in the mind called My Lai