manmohan singh

India to boycott the London Olympics over Dow Chemicals’ ‘fabric’?

While Indian newspapers’ front pages and TV channels  feed off Anna Hazare’s crusade against corruption, the sports sections are chockfull of analysis, recriminations and reactions to Team India’s pitiful surrender of their No.1 Test ranking to England.

The headliners above have buried another burning issue: The unpalatable association of Dow Chemicals with the London Olympics.

Dow’s Performance Plastics Division will deliver a “fabric wrap” for the main stadium made of “sustainable” resins.

London Olympics chief,Sir Sebastian Coe, described the “wrap” provided by Dow Chemicals as “the icing on the cake”.

He said:

“"The stadium will look spectacular at Games time and having the wrap is the icing on the cake. I’m delighted that Dow as one of the newer worldwide partners of the Olympic movement will be providing it and importantly doing it in a sustainable way."

The announcement provoked outrage in India.

Q & A With Sheila Dikshit

1) The Comptroller and Accountant General (CAG) report indicts you…

No comment. I have yet to receive a copy of the report. Can’t I beautify my beloved Delhi for the CommonWealth Games? Should cost be an issue?

2) But it’s a case of Disappearing Beauty….the potted plants are missing from government offices…

Beauty is temporal, isn’t it? Just proving the old adage.

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Indo-Pak semi-final at Mohali sets the stage for cricket diplomacy

Cricket diplomacy is back.

An Indo-Pak semi-final in a World Cup is a momentous occasion. It warrants an attempt to bring the two nations closer.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh may be besieged by the multiple scandals hitting his beleaguered   government but he has not forgotten how to make a grand gesture.

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